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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. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. race — humankind
  4. suit — in cards
  5. suit — to fit
  6. object — a thing
  7. cold — an illness
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. race — a contest
  11. sharp — clever
  12. squash — to crush
  13. cold — not warm
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. squash — the sport
  16. race — the arms race
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. ground — crushed
  19. object — to protest
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. object — an aim
  23. ground — a position
  24. ground — the earth

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