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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. date — the fruit
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. rash — hasty
  5. degree — an amount
  6. cold — not warm
  7. charge — electricity
  8. cold — an illness
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. race — humankind
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. rash — a series
  14. charge — in control
  15. race — a contest
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. pass — a permit
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. degree — temperature
  20. degree — from a university
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. charge — a price
  24. pound — a weight

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