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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. race — a contest
  3. kid — to tease
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. race — the arms race
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. spell — a short time
  12. spell — magic
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. race — humankind
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. rule — a law
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. kid — child
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. rule — government
  22. wax — to grow
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. sharp — clever

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