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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. race — a contest
  3. degree — from a university
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. staff — employees
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. race — humankind
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. bat — the animal
  11. lean — thin
  12. degree — temperature
  13. degree — an amount
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. lean — to bend
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. rush — hurry
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. staff — employees
  20. staff — a stick
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. bat — for baseball

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