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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 partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. scale — in music
  5. bank — for money
  6. bank — for money
  7. present — the time now
  8. race — the arms race
  9. scale — size or range
  10. last — to go on
  11. kid — to tease
  12. bank — of a river
  13. last — final
  14. kid — child
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. race — humankind
  17. race — a contest
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. last — finally
  23. present — a gift
  24. scale — for weighing

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