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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. When was this ________________ built?
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. spring — the season
  4. cap — of ice
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. cap — a lid
  9. season — of the year
  10. spring — of water
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. bat — the animal
  13. spring — a coil
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. cap — a hat
  16. race — humankind
  17. race — a contest
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. tube — the underground
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. tube — a container
  24. season — in sport

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