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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 ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. race — a contest
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. track — a song
  5. cell — a phone
  6. press — a publisher
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. press — to push
  10. race — the arms race
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. track — to keep track
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. cell — in biology
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. track — a path
  17. rest — what's left
  18. row — a line
  19. row — to paddle
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. rest — a break
  22. race — humankind
  23. press — newspapers
  24. calf — a young animal

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