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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. file — a document
  3. bear — the animal
  4. spell — magic
  5. content — happy
  6. cold — an illness
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. spell — a short time
  9. cold — not warm
  10. bear — the animal
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. bore — to tire
  13. spell — letters
  14. file — a line of people
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. file — a tool
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. bore — to drill
  19. content — the amount
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. race — a contest
  22. race — humankind
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. fan — a supporter

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