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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. key — for a lock
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. race — the arms race
  6. cold — an illness
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. key — the most important part
  10. key — in music
  11. race — humankind
  12. spring — a coil
  13. ball — a dance
  14. squash — the sport
  15. cold — not warm
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. race — a contest
  18. spring — the season
  19. stand — to bear
  20. spring — of water
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. squash — to crush
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. ball — a great time

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