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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. race — a contest
  4. race — humankind
  5. race — the arms race
  6. stock — goods
  7. cell — a phone
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. rule — a law
  10. cell — in biology
  11. rule — government
  12. cold — not warm
  13. cold — an illness
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. drill — the tool
  16. can — a tin
  17. drill — a practice
  18. can — a tin
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. can — to be able to
  23. stock — shares
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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