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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. race — a contest
  3. tube — the underground
  4. rash — a series
  5. shower — to wash
  6. degree — temperature
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. race — the arms race
  9. rash — hasty
  10. squash — to crush
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. chip — to eat
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. degree — from a university
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. tube — a container
  19. squash — the sport
  20. chip — for betting
  21. race — humankind
  22. pound — a weight
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. degree — an amount

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