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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. squash — to crush
  3. race — a contest
  4. last — final
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. staff — employees
  8. craft — a skill
  9. squash — the sport
  10. staff — a stick
  11. last — to go on
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. wax — to grow
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. staff — employees
  18. race — humankind
  19. rush — hurry
  20. race — the arms race
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. craft — boats
  24. last — finally

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