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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: race · wind · cap · cold · face · charge

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. wind — moving air
  3. cold — an illness
  4. face — part of the head
  5. cap — a hat
  6. charge — a price
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. race — the arms race
  9. wind — moving air
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. race — a contest
  12. cap — of ice
  13. charge — electricity
  14. cap — a lid
  15. charge — in control
  16. cold — not warm
  17. face — to point toward
  18. face — to confront

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