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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. race — the arms race
  3. race — a contest
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. wind — moving air
  6. pop — music
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. content — the amount
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. wind — moving air
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. pop — soda
  15. pop — to visit
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. rash — hasty
  19. stand — to bear
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. rash — a series
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. content — happy
  24. race — humankind

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