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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. race — a contest
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. firm — steady
  5. race — humankind
  6. tube — a container
  7. branch — a division
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. pitch — completely
  10. cold — an illness
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. firm — a company
  13. wind — moving air
  14. tube — the underground
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. race — the arms race
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. firm — decided
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. cold — not warm

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