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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 116 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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. fall — to drop
  3. fall — to drop
  4. deal — to handle
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. cell — in biology
  10. race — the arms race
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. cell — a phone
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. race — a contest
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. fall — the season
  20. content — happy
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. race — humankind
  23. content — the amount
  24. rush — hurry

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