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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. club — for dancing
  3. race — the arms race
  4. firm — a company
  5. race — a contest
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. pound — a weight
  8. fall — the season
  9. race — humankind
  10. firm — steady
  11. fall — to drop
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. club — a group
  14. cold — not warm
  15. club — for golf
  16. game — wild animals
  17. fall — to drop
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. firm — decided
  21. game — a match
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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