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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. race — the arms race
  3. cold — an illness
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. pit — in a race
  6. key — for a lock
  7. tube — the underground
  8. race — a contest
  9. key — the most important part
  10. cold — not warm
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. key — in music
  13. pit — a hole
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. swing — to play on
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. swing — music
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. tube — a container
  20. vault — a safe
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. swing — in golf
  23. race — humankind
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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