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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. band — a music group
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. band — a ring
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. race — a contest
  8. cap — a hat
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. cap — a lid
  12. court — of law
  13. cap — of ice
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. wound — an injury
  16. court — of a king
  17. deal — to handle
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. court — for sport
  22. wound — an injury
  23. race — humankind
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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