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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. mate — to breed
  3. race — a contest
  4. rest — what's left
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. wind — moving air
  7. rest — a break
  8. race — humankind
  9. mate — a partner
  10. land — to come down
  11. rash — hasty
  12. land — ground
  13. rash — a series
  14. hand — help
  15. rest — what's left
  16. swing — in golf
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. wind — moving air
  19. race — the arms race
  20. land — a country
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. swing — to play on
  23. hand — in cards
  24. mate — a friend

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