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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. race — humankind
  4. squash — the sport
  5. current — electric
  6. squash — to crush
  7. race — the arms race
  8. dip — to sink
  9. cold — an illness
  10. current — happening now
  11. cold — not warm
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. current — of water
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. snap — to click
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. press — newspapers
  19. board — a committee
  20. board — to get on
  21. press — a publisher
  22. race — a contest
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. press — to push

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