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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. firm — a company
  4. race — the arms race
  5. degree — temperature
  6. firm — decided
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. swing — music
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. chair — a leader
  11. swing — to play on
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. drill — the tool
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. drill — a practice
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. swing — in golf
  19. degree — an amount
  20. drill — army training
  21. race — humankind
  22. degree — from a university
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. firm — steady

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