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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 120 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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. hand — help
  5. race — the arms race
  6. cold — an illness
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. race — humankind
  9. hand — in cards
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. shower — rain
  12. firm — a company
  13. firm — decided
  14. race — a contest
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. cold — not warm
  18. shower — to wash
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. firm — steady
  24. pitch — completely

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