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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. kid — child
  3. stand — to bear
  4. hand — in cards
  5. kid — to tease
  6. race — humankind
  7. key — for a lock
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. key — the most important part
  11. race — the arms race
  12. cap — a lid
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. kick — in football
  15. race — a contest
  16. key — in music
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. cap — of ice
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. hand — help
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. cap — a hat

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