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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. degree — an amount
  5. race — the arms race
  6. rush — hurry
  7. bass — low music
  8. bass — the fish
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. race — humankind
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. capital — money
  15. rule — government
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. rule — a law
  18. race — a contest
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. degree — from a university
  22. degree — temperature
  23. capital — a city
  24. sharp — clever

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