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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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Word bank
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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: foot · race · hand · wind · object · mine · club · rush

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. race — the arms race
  3. rush — hurry
  4. club — for golf
  5. mine — for digging
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. hand — in cards
  10. club — for dancing
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. club — a group
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. object — an aim
  15. foot — a measure
  16. object — to protest
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — moving air
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. object — a thing
  22. race — a contest
  23. race — humankind
  24. rush — 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