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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. rash — hasty
  3. race — humankind
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. rule — government
  7. race — the arms race
  8. firm — decided
  9. hand — in cards
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. firm — a company
  12. hand — help
  13. bound — certain
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. race — a contest
  16. rule — a law
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. rash — a series
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. bound — tied together
  22. bound — obliged
  23. mine — for digging
  24. coach — a trainer

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