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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. race — the arms race
  3. vault — a safe
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. club — a group
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. rule — government
  8. row — a line
  9. kid — to tease
  10. row — to paddle
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. cell — a phone
  13. cell — in biology
  14. club — for golf
  15. race — humankind
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. club — for dancing
  19. wake — a trail
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. kid — child
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. rule — a law
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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