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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. race — a contest
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. wind — moving air
  6. rash — a series
  7. race — the arms race
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. suit — to fit
  11. suit — clothes
  12. snap — to click
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. rash — hasty
  15. suit — in cards
  16. wind — moving air
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. track — to keep track
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. race — humankind
  22. track — a song
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. date — the fruit

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