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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. race — the arms race
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. root — the cause
  5. chest — of your body
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. root — of a word
  8. mate — to breed
  9. kid — child
  10. root — of a plant
  11. chest — a box
  12. rash — hasty
  13. mate — a partner
  14. band — a music group
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. rush — hurry
  17. kid — to tease
  18. mate — a friend
  19. chest — of your body
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. race — a contest
  22. band — a ring
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. race — humankind

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