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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: rest · cap · cold · bowl · jam · race

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. cap — a hat
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. cold — an illness
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. rest — a break
  9. race — the arms race
  10. cap — a lid
  11. cold — not warm
  12. rest — what's left
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. rest — what's left
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. race — a contest
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. cap — of ice

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