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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. cold — an illness
  4. scale — in music
  5. roll — a list
  6. race — humankind
  7. race — the arms race
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. scale — size or range
  11. deal — to handle
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. race — a contest
  14. lean — to bend
  15. mine — for digging
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. chip — to eat
  18. cold — not warm
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. chip — for betting
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. lean — thin
  24. roll — a cake

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