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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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. spring — the season
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. race — humankind
  5. spring — a coil
  6. race — a contest
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. shower — to wash
  9. shower — rain
  10. band — a ring
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. race — the arms race
  14. chair — a leader
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. spring — of water
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. kick — in football
  24. band — a music group

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