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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. lie — to recline
  3. race — humankind
  4. swing — to play on
  5. bound — certain
  6. chest — of your body
  7. mark — a grade
  8. race — the arms race
  9. chest — of your body
  10. mark — a trace
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. saw — the tool
  14. swing — in golf
  15. swing — music
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. saw — the tool
  19. bound — tied together
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. chest — a box
  22. bound — obliged
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. race — a contest

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