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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. net — after costs
  3. drill — the tool
  4. cap — of ice
  5. race — the arms race
  6. drill — a practice
  7. staff — a stick
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. net — in sport
  10. cap — a lid
  11. cap — a hat
  12. staff — employees
  13. dip — to sink
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cold — an illness
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. race — a contest
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. race — humankind
  20. drill — army training
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. sharp — clever
  23. staff — employees
  24. net — for catching

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