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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. row — to paddle
  4. club — a group
  5. race — humankind
  6. club — for golf
  7. net — for catching
  8. last — final
  9. last — finally
  10. cold — not warm
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. race — the arms race
  13. vault — a safe
  14. toast — bread
  15. race — a contest
  16. club — for dancing
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. net — in sport
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. row — a line
  23. net — after costs
  24. last — to go on

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