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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. ground — a position
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. ground — the earth
  5. bat — the animal
  6. bound — tied together
  7. wind — moving air
  8. race — the arms race
  9. wind — moving air
  10. object — a thing
  11. object — to protest
  12. ground — crushed
  13. object — an aim
  14. bass — low music
  15. bound — obliged
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. season — of the year
  18. bass — the fish
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bound — certain
  21. race — a contest
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. season — in sport
  24. race — humankind

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