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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 polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. cap — of ice
  3. bound — certain
  4. bound — obliged
  5. bass — low music
  6. cap — a hat
  7. tube — the underground
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. rest — what's left
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. race — the arms race
  12. tear — to rip
  13. bound — tied together
  14. cap — a lid
  15. tear — from crying
  16. rest — what's left
  17. rest — a break
  18. race — a contest
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. mark — a grade
  21. mark — a trace
  22. tube — a container
  23. bass — the fish
  24. tear — from crying

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