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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. race — humankind
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. object — to protest
  5. squash — the sport
  6. squash — to crush
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. race — the arms race
  12. object — a thing
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. hand — in cards
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. content — happy
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. content — the amount
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. hand — help
  23. object — an aim
  24. content — videos and posts

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