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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. press — a publisher
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. club — for golf
  6. club — a group
  7. cold — an illness
  8. race — the arms race
  9. chip — for betting
  10. race — humankind
  11. sharp — clever
  12. cold — not warm
  13. press — newspapers
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. race — a contest
  16. cap — a hat
  17. press — to push
  18. cap — a lid
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cap — of ice
  22. chip — to eat
  23. club — for dancing
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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