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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 120 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: cold · race · rest · deal · racket · row

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. row — a line
  3. row — to paddle
  4. race — the arms race
  5. race — humankind
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. rest — a break
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. cold — an illness
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. deal — to handle
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. rest — what's left
  16. cold — not warm
  17. race — a contest
  18. cold — the Cold War

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