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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 116 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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. race — humankind
  5. suit — in cards
  6. last — finally
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. last — final
  10. hand — help
  11. race — a contest
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. mine — for digging
  15. suit — to fit
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. last — to go on
  18. bat — the animal
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. lie — to recline
  21. suit — clothes
  22. race — the arms race
  23. hand — in cards
  24. wake — a trail

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