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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 116 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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. face — part of the head
  3. race — humankind
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. face — to confront
  7. cell — a phone
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. wax — to grow
  10. file — a document
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. cell — in biology
  13. file — a tool
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. mine — for digging
  17. face — to point toward
  18. file — a line of people
  19. race — a contest
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. cell — in a prison

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