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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. fine — high quality
  3. fork — in a road
  4. swing — music
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. rest — a break
  7. degree — an amount
  8. court — of a king
  9. race — a contest
  10. rest — what's left
  11. degree — from a university
  12. rest — what's left
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. race — the arms race
  15. swing — in golf
  16. degree — temperature
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. swing — to play on
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. court — of law
  22. fine — all right
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. court — for sport

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