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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. bass — the fish
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. bass — low music
  5. cue — for pool
  6. wound — an injury
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cold — an illness
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. toast — bread
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. race — the arms race
  13. kid — to tease
  14. cold — not warm
  15. race — humankind
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. race — a contest
  19. deal — to handle
  20. kid — child
  21. cue — a hint
  22. cue — a signal
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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