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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 116 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: kick · dip · race · last · bound · pop · racket · tear

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. pop — music
  3. bound — tied together
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. race — the arms race
  7. tear — to rip
  8. last — final
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. dip — to sink
  11. tear — from crying
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. race — a contest
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. tear — from crying
  16. kick — in football
  17. bound — obliged
  18. pop — soda
  19. last — to go on
  20. bound — certain
  21. last — finally
  22. pop — to visit
  23. race — humankind
  24. kick — a thrill

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