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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. race — a contest
  3. degree — from a university
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. swing — music
  6. staff — employees
  7. degree — temperature
  8. squash — the sport
  9. staff — employees
  10. squash — to crush
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. swing — to play on
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. race — humankind
  15. swing — in golf
  16. race — the arms race
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. rash — a series
  19. land — to come down
  20. rash — hasty
  21. land — ground
  22. staff — a stick
  23. degree — an amount
  24. land — a country

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