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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. board — a committee
  4. mug — a face
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cold — an illness
  7. board — to get on
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. mug — to rob
  10. cap — of ice
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. race — a contest
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. cold — not warm
  15. mug — a cup
  16. cap — a lid
  17. cap — a hat
  18. pop — to visit
  19. cell — in biology
  20. pop — soda
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. pop — music
  23. kick — in football
  24. race — humankind

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