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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 can't ________________ this cold.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. court — for sport
  3. race — the arms race
  4. squash — to crush
  5. race — a contest
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. can — a tin
  9. can — a tin
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. court — of a king
  12. race — humankind
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. court — of law
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. file — a line of people
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. can — to be able to
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. file — a document
  21. squash — the sport
  22. file — a tool
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. mouse — the animal

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