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

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. file — a line of people
  4. kid — child
  5. kid — to tease
  6. band — a music group
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. race — a contest
  12. file — a document
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. file — a tool
  15. vault — a safe
  16. cold — not warm
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. race — humankind
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. cold — an illness
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. band — a ring
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. leaves — of a tree

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