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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. last — to go on
  3. ball — a dance
  4. last — final
  5. file — a line of people
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. file — a document
  8. race — a contest
  9. club — for dancing
  10. race — humankind
  11. club — a group
  12. cold — not warm
  13. last — finally
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. file — a tool
  18. ball — a great time
  19. club — for golf
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. race — the arms race
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. hide — animal skin

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