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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. tear — from crying
  3. bore — to tire
  4. mine — for digging
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. tear — to rip
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. row — a line
  9. wake — a trail
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. race — the arms race
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. bore — to drill
  15. tear — from crying
  16. sharp — clever
  17. row — to paddle
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. race — a contest
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. racket — for tennis

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