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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. race — a contest
  4. current — happening now
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. bulb — for light
  8. march — the month
  9. race — the arms race
  10. bulb — for light
  11. cold — not warm
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. race — humankind
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. cold — an illness
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. date — the fruit
  19. current — of water
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. march — music
  23. current — electric
  24. cold — the Cold War

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