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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. swing — music
  3. bear — the animal
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. track — a path
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. bear — the animal
  8. tear — from crying
  9. band — a ring
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. spell — magic
  12. swing — in golf
  13. band — a music group
  14. swing — to play on
  15. rush — hurry
  16. spell — letters
  17. spell — a short time
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. track — to keep track
  20. race — the arms race
  21. tear — to rip
  22. track — a song
  23. race — humankind
  24. tear — from crying

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