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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. squash — to crush
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. prune — to trim
  5. march — music
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. squash — the sport
  8. fine — high quality
  9. fine — all right
  10. chair — a leader
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. march — the month
  13. prune — to trim
  14. pass — a permit
  15. race — the arms race
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. cold — not warm
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cold — an illness
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. race — a contest
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. march — the month

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