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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 120 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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. chip — for betting
  3. content — the amount
  4. last — final
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. last — to go on
  8. race — a contest
  9. content — happy
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. last — finally
  12. cold — not warm
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. foot — a measure
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. race — the arms race
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. chip — to eat
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. cold — an illness
  24. arm — a part of something

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