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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. snap — to click
  3. race — the arms race
  4. tear — to rip
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. bass — low music
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. tear — from crying
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. current — happening now
  12. current — electric
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. tear — from crying
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. bass — the fish
  18. spell — magic
  19. race — humankind
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. spell — letters
  22. current — of water
  23. spell — a short time
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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