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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. club — for dancing
  4. capital — money
  5. charge — a price
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. root — the cause
  12. snap — to click
  13. club — for golf
  14. cold — an illness
  15. race — the arms race
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. charge — electricity
  18. capital — a city
  19. charge — in control
  20. club — a group
  21. race — a contest
  22. root — of a plant
  23. root — of a word
  24. cold — not warm

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