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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. bound — certain
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. cue — a hint
  6. swing — to play on
  7. cold — not warm
  8. race — a contest
  9. rule — a law
  10. cue — a signal
  11. cue — for pool
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. swing — music
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. bound — obliged
  16. content — the amount
  17. rule — government
  18. vault — a safe
  19. content — happy
  20. bound — tied together
  21. swing — in golf
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. race — humankind
  24. race — the arms race

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