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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. cold — not warm
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. race — a contest
  6. rest — a break
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. deal — to handle
  10. rest — what's left
  11. chip — for betting
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. race — the arms race
  14. wind — moving air
  15. rest — what's left
  16. chip — to eat
  17. snap — to click
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. cold — an illness
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. race — humankind

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