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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. object — a thing
  3. fall — to drop
  4. rush — hurry
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. race — humankind
  8. object — to protest
  9. board — a committee
  10. race — a contest
  11. ball — a great time
  12. ball — a dance
  13. squash — to crush
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. fall — to drop
  16. object — an aim
  17. squash — the sport
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. race — the arms race
  20. bass — the fish
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. fall — the season
  23. bass — low music
  24. board — to get on

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