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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. current — of water
  3. current — electric
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. race — a contest
  6. cap — a lid
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. branch — a division
  10. ground — crushed
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. wind — moving air
  14. race — the arms race
  15. squash — to crush
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. wind — moving air
  18. ground — the earth
  19. cap — of ice
  20. current — happening now
  21. squash — the sport
  22. cap — a hat
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. race — humankind

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