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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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. race — a contest
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. cold — an illness
  5. pitch — completely
  6. swing — music
  7. wind — moving air
  8. swing — to play on
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. fine — high quality
  11. race — humankind
  12. swing — in golf
  13. club — a group
  14. fine — all right
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. club — for dancing
  19. club — for golf
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. cold — not warm
  22. race — the arms race
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. fine — a penalty

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