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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. current — electric
  5. pit — in a race
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. current — happening now
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. hand — in cards
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. rush — hurry
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. race — a contest
  15. race — humankind
  16. mine — for digging
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. pit — a hole
  21. hand — help
  22. current — of water
  23. race — the arms race
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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