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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. spring — a coil
  3. bear — the animal
  4. bear — the animal
  5. ball — a great time
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. tear — from crying
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. race — a contest
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. rush — hurry
  14. tear — to rip
  15. content — the amount
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. spring — of water
  18. content — happy
  19. race — humankind
  20. ball — a dance
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. spring — the season
  23. tear — from crying
  24. patient — a sick person

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