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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
468
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: game · season · scale · craft · stem · rule · race · shower

  1. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. craft — a skill
  4. rule — a law
  5. scale — size or range
  6. season — of the year
  7. race — humankind
  8. game — a match
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. game — wild animals
  12. race — a contest
  13. rule — government
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. shower — to wash
  17. craft — boats
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. stem — to come from
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. shower — rain
  22. season — in sport
  23. race — the arms race
  24. rule — to rule out

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