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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. race — the arms race
  3. fine — all right
  4. race — a contest
  5. rest — what's left
  6. race — humankind
  7. object — to protest
  8. snap — to click
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. rest — what's left
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. object — an aim
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. wind — moving air
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. rash — a series
  18. wind — moving air
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. rest — a break
  22. rash — hasty
  23. fine — high quality
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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