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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. present — there
  3. present — a gift
  4. wax — to grow
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. race — a contest
  7. season — in sport
  8. present — the time now
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. race — the arms race
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. season — of the year
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. race — humankind
  16. cold — not warm
  17. cold — an illness
  18. kid — to tease
  19. chip — for betting
  20. chip — to eat
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. kid — child
  24. hide — animal skin

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