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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. race — a contest
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. race — humankind
  6. wind — moving air
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. pop — to visit
  11. wind — moving air
  12. cold — not warm
  13. track — to keep track
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. cold — an illness
  16. track — a path
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. pop — music
  19. pop — soda
  20. rush — hurry
  21. race — the arms race
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. cold — the Cold War

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