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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. band — a ring
  6. lean — to bend
  7. cue — a hint
  8. cue — for pool
  9. cell — a phone
  10. lean — thin
  11. cue — a signal
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. sharp — clever
  15. cell — in biology
  16. race — a contest
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. race — the arms race
  20. pitch — completely
  21. band — a music group
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. sharp — with an edge

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