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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. race — the arms race
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. cold — an illness
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. race — humankind
  8. cold — not warm
  9. lean — to bend
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. race — a contest
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. wind — moving air
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. lean — thin

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