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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. current — happening now
  3. object — a thing
  4. object — an aim
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. current — electric
  7. tube — the underground
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. race — the arms race
  11. race — a contest
  12. current — of water
  13. wind — moving air
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tube — a container
  16. tear — from crying
  17. object — to protest
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. tear — to rip
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. race — humankind
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. wind — moving air
  24. hand — in cards

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