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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cue · race · temple · chest · bass · rule

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. bass — the fish
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. chest — of your body
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. chest — a box
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. rule — a law
  9. cue — for pool
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. race — a contest
  14. cue — a signal
  15. bass — low music
  16. rule — government
  17. cue — a hint
  18. race — the arms race

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