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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. wound — an injury
  4. race — the arms race
  5. ball — a great time
  6. date — the fruit
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. wound — an injury
  9. ball — a dance
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. hand — help
  12. rush — hurry
  13. squash — to crush
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. cell — in biology
  17. race — humankind
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. squash — the sport
  21. cell — a phone
  22. hand — in cards
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. race — a contest

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