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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. race — humankind
  3. race — a contest
  4. mark — a grade
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. mark — a trace
  9. race — the arms race
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. chest — of your body
  14. bat — the animal
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. chest — of your body
  24. chest — a box

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