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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. capital — money
  3. cold — an illness
  4. swing — to play on
  5. capital — a city
  6. race — humankind
  7. swing — music
  8. face — to point toward
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. swing — in golf
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. wound — an injury
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. face — to confront
  18. wound — an injury
  19. cold — not warm
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. race — the arms race
  22. face — part of the head
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. race — a contest

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