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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 116 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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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: ball · saw · cell · swing · land · pop · race · sharp

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. cell — a phone
  3. cell — in biology
  4. ball — a great time
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. pop — soda
  7. swing — to play on
  8. land — to come down
  9. race — humankind
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. swing — music
  13. pop — to visit
  14. race — the arms race
  15. pop — music
  16. saw — the tool
  17. land — ground
  18. race — a contest
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. swing — in golf
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. sharp — clever
  23. saw — the tool
  24. ball — a dance

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