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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. bound — tied together
  4. race — a contest
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. lie — to recline
  7. swing — music
  8. field — a subject
  9. cue — a hint
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bound — certain
  12. swing — to play on
  13. cue — a signal
  14. chest — a box
  15. race — humankind
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. cue — for pool
  18. chest — of your body
  19. field — for sport
  20. row — to paddle
  21. field — farmland
  22. bound — obliged
  23. row — a line
  24. swing — in golf

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