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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 120 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 · track · pound · game · chair · sharp · mug

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. sharp — clever
  4. pound — a weight
  5. game — a match
  6. race — the arms race
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. mug — a cup
  9. track — to keep track
  10. race — humankind
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. game — wild animals
  15. mug — a face
  16. chair — a leader
  17. kid — to tease
  18. race — a contest
  19. mug — to rob
  20. track — a song
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. track — a path
  23. kid — child
  24. sharp — exactly

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