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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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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: kid · race · bowl · track · jam · chair · dip · mine

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. track — a path
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. track — a song
  8. mine — for digging
  9. race — humankind
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. race — a contest
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. kid — child
  15. race — the arms race
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. dip — to sink
  20. track — to keep track
  21. chair — a leader
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. kid — to tease
  24. mine — belonging to me

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