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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. rock — a stone
  4. race — the arms race
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. race — a contest
  8. content — happy
  9. race — humankind
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. content — the amount
  14. mine — for digging
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. lie — to recline
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. kick — in football
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. kick — with a leg

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