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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. fine — all right
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. wind — moving air
  6. court — of a king
  7. bat — the animal
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. race — the arms race
  12. rule — a law
  13. fine — high quality
  14. band — a music group
  15. rule — government
  16. wind — moving air
  17. band — a ring
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. court — for sport
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. court — of law
  23. race — humankind
  24. fine — a penalty

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