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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  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. rush — to hurry
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. kid — child
  4. bear — the animal
  5. cue — a signal
  6. kid — to tease
  7. rush — hurry
  8. sharp — clever
  9. field — farmland
  10. race — humankind
  11. cue — for pool
  12. swing — music
  13. bear — the animal
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — for sport
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. race — the arms race
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. swing — in golf
  22. cue — a hint
  23. swing — to play on
  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