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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. wake — a trail
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. race — humankind
  6. firm — decided
  7. hand — help
  8. cold — an illness
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. race — a contest
  11. drill — a practice
  12. cold — not warm
  13. firm — steady
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. drill — army training
  16. hand — in cards
  17. net — in sport
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. drill — the tool
  20. firm — a company
  21. race — the arms race
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. net — after costs
  24. net — for catching

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