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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. lean — thin
  4. foot — a measure
  5. band — a ring
  6. race — the arms race
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. race — a contest
  12. current — of water
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. band — a music group
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. dip — to sink
  18. lean — to bend
  19. race — humankind
  20. current — electric
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. current — happening now

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