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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. race — humankind
  3. face — to point toward
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. race — a contest
  7. saw — the tool
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. race — the arms race
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. saw — the tool
  12. cell — a phone
  13. cell — in biology
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. face — to confront
  16. rest — what's left
  17. face — part of the head
  18. rest — what's left

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