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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. staff — a stick
  3. race — a contest
  4. staff — employees
  5. club — for dancing
  6. face — to point toward
  7. mate — to breed
  8. mate — a partner
  9. last — to go on
  10. staff — employees
  11. mate — a friend
  12. wound — an injury
  13. club — for golf
  14. race — the arms race
  15. last — final
  16. face — to confront
  17. wound — an injury
  18. track — a song
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. track — a path
  21. last — finally
  22. face — part of the head
  23. club — a group
  24. track — to keep track

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