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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wake · mouse · race · cabinet · chip · row · spring · saw

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. saw — the tool
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. race — the arms race
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. race — humankind
  10. chip — to eat
  11. spring — a coil
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. spring — of water
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. spring — the season
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. wake — a trail
  20. chip — for betting
  21. row — to paddle
  22. race — a contest
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. row — a line

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com