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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. race — the arms race
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. tear — from crying
  7. club — for golf
  8. game — wild animals
  9. fork — in a road
  10. cold — an illness
  11. tear — to rip
  12. tear — from crying
  13. club — a group
  14. race — a contest
  15. cold — not warm
  16. current — electric
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. game — a match
  19. bore — to tire
  20. current — of water
  21. club — for dancing
  22. current — happening now
  23. race — humankind
  24. bore — to drill

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