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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. race — the arms race
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. race — a contest
  6. net — in sport
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. cold — an illness
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. staff — employees
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. bear — the animal
  13. stand — to bear
  14. cold — not warm
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. net — after costs
  17. staff — a stick
  18. swing — music
  19. net — for catching
  20. bear — the animal
  21. swing — in golf
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. race — humankind
  24. staff — employees

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