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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. mate — a friend
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. mate — a partner
  5. last — final
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. craft — boats
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. rash — hasty
  10. craft — a skill
  11. race — the arms race
  12. last — to go on
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. pound — a weight
  15. race — humankind
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. rash — a series
  18. last — finally
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. mate — to breed
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. race — a contest
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. pound — to hit hard

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