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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: cue · pitcher · chest · present · scale · race · mine · face

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. present — there
  3. cue — for pool
  4. cue — a hint
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. face — part of the head
  7. scale — in music
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. chest — of your body
  10. mine — for digging
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. chest — of your body
  13. race — the arms race
  14. face — to point toward
  15. face — to confront
  16. cue — a signal
  17. scale — size or range
  18. race — a contest
  19. present — a gift
  20. chest — a box
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. present — the time now
  24. scale — for weighing

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