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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. club — for golf
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. race — the arms race
  6. race — a contest
  7. tear — from crying
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. club — for dancing
  10. ground — the earth
  11. ground — a position
  12. tear — from crying
  13. file — a document
  14. file — a tool
  15. club — a group
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. race — humankind
  18. ball — a dance
  19. current — of water
  20. file — a line of people
  21. current — happening now
  22. ball — a great time
  23. tear — to rip
  24. current — electric

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