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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 116 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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. net — for catching
  3. band — a music group
  4. swing — to play on
  5. spell — a short time
  6. spell — magic
  7. rest — what's left
  8. band — a ring
  9. rest — a break
  10. swing — music
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. bound — tied together
  13. net — after costs
  14. swing — in golf
  15. bound — certain
  16. spell — letters
  17. last — final
  18. bound — obliged
  19. last — to go on
  20. race — a contest
  21. last — finally
  22. rest — what's left
  23. net — in sport
  24. race — the arms race

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