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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. drill — the tool
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. land — ground
  8. drill — a practice
  9. bat — the animal
  10. race — humankind
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. drill — army training
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cold — an illness
  16. land — to come down
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. land — a country
  19. race — the arms race
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. race — a contest
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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