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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: roll · race · wind · squash · sharp · pitcher · mark · fine

  1. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. squash — the sport
  5. race — humankind
  6. roll — a cake
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. wind — moving air
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. wind — moving air
  12. fine — high quality
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. fine — all right
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. race — the arms race
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. race — a contest
  19. mark — a grade
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. squash — to crush
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. sharp — clever
  24. roll — a list

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