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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. rash — hasty
  3. ground — a position
  4. fine — all right
  5. can — a tin
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. degree — temperature
  8. rest — a break
  9. race — humankind
  10. ground — the earth
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. rest — what's left
  13. race — a contest
  14. ground — crushed
  15. rash — a series
  16. rest — what's left
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. degree — from a university
  19. degree — an amount
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. can — a tin
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. fine — high quality
  24. race — the arms race

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