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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. sharp — clever
  4. swing — to play on
  5. swing — in golf
  6. kid — to tease
  7. race — a contest
  8. root — the cause
  9. swing — music
  10. bound — certain
  11. firm — decided
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. race — the arms race
  14. firm — a company
  15. race — humankind
  16. bound — obliged
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. bound — tied together
  19. firm — steady
  20. snap — to click
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. root — of a plant
  24. root — of a word

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