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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. race — humankind
  3. race — the arms race
  4. cap — of ice
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. ground — crushed
  8. pop — to visit
  9. tear — to rip
  10. can — a tin
  11. pop — soda
  12. cap — a hat
  13. wound — an injury
  14. pop — music
  15. tear — from crying
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. ground — the earth
  18. wound — an injury
  19. can — a tin
  20. tear — from crying
  21. can — to be able to
  22. chair — a leader
  23. cap — a lid
  24. race — a contest

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