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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 was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. hand — help
  4. hand — in cards
  5. drill — a practice
  6. race — humankind
  7. race — a contest
  8. wind — moving air
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. drill — army training
  11. scale — in music
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. last — finally
  14. scale — size or range
  15. drill — the tool
  16. race — the arms race
  17. last — final
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. stand — to bear
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. last — to go on
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. scale — for weighing

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