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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. cold — an illness
  3. bound — certain
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. bound — obliged
  6. bound — tied together
  7. file — a line of people
  8. snap — to click
  9. firm — a company
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. chip — to eat
  12. file — a tool
  13. cap — a lid
  14. cap — of ice
  15. firm — steady
  16. chip — for betting
  17. file — a document
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. cold — not warm
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. race — humankind
  22. race — a contest
  23. cap — a hat
  24. firm — decided

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