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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. firm — decided
  3. race — a contest
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. wind — moving air
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. race — the arms race
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. rush — hurry
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. clip — for paper
  14. wind — moving air
  15. firm — a company
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. clip — to cut
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. firm — steady
  22. dip — to sink
  23. clip — a video
  24. rush — a thrill

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