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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. rock — music
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. rash — a series
  5. degree — temperature
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. rock — a stone
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. degree — from a university
  10. stand — to bear
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. race — the arms race
  13. wax — to grow
  14. rash — hasty
  15. degree — an amount
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. capital — a city
  19. capital — money
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. race — humankind

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