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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. swing — in golf
  3. spell — magic
  4. spell — letters
  5. swing — music
  6. swing — to play on
  7. hand — in cards
  8. hand — help
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. spell — a short time
  11. cell — in biology
  12. tube — the underground
  13. rush — hurry
  14. cell — a phone
  15. pound — a weight
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. race — the arms race
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. tube — a container
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. race — humankind
  24. pound — for dogs

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