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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. court — for sport
  3. cold — not warm
  4. race — a contest
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. race — the arms race
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. court — of law
  12. firm — steady
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. race — humankind
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. chair — a leader
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. firm — a company
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. cold — an illness
  22. court — of a king
  23. lie — to recline
  24. chair — a professorship

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