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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 120 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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  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. club — a group
  3. rash — a series
  4. chest — of your body
  5. club — for dancing
  6. firm — steady
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. ground — the earth
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. rash — hasty
  11. club — for golf
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. race — a contest
  14. firm — a company
  15. firm — decided
  16. race — the arms race
  17. chest — a box
  18. chest — of your body
  19. ground — a position
  20. ground — crushed
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. sharp — clever
  23. cold — an illness
  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