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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. race — a contest
  3. key — for a lock
  4. mark — a trace
  5. wind — moving air
  6. race — the arms race
  7. cap — of ice
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wind — moving air
  10. file — a document
  11. spell — magic
  12. chest — a box
  13. spell — a short time
  14. cap — a hat
  15. chest — of your body
  16. race — humankind
  17. cap — a lid
  18. spell — letters
  19. file — a line of people
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. key — in music
  22. file — a tool
  23. key — the most important part
  24. mark — a grade

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