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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 116 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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. chip — for betting
  3. cold — an illness
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. race — the arms race
  6. tube — a container
  7. chip — to eat
  8. mate — to breed
  9. ground — the earth
  10. ball — a dance
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. ground — a position
  13. ball — a great time
  14. ground — crushed
  15. mate — a friend
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. tube — the underground
  20. race — humankind
  21. mate — a partner
  22. cold — not warm
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. ball — a round shape

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