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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 120 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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. bulb — for light
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. last — final
  6. cold — not warm
  7. race — the arms race
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. hand — in cards
  10. stand — to bear
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. bulb — for light
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. firm — steady
  15. race — humankind
  16. last — finally
  17. hand — help
  18. plane — a tool
  19. cold — an illness
  20. firm — decided
  21. last — to go on
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. firm — a company
  24. plane — an aircraft

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