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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. race — a contest
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bat — the animal
  5. current — of water
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. band — a music group
  8. wind — moving air
  9. current — electric
  10. field — farmland
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. current — happening now
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. band — a ring
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. field — for sport
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. race — the arms race
  20. field — a subject
  21. pass — a permit
  22. vault — a safe
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. pass — to spend time

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