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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: rash · cold · tear · current · wake · suit · mine · race

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. rash — a series
  3. rash — hasty
  4. suit — clothes
  5. tear — from crying
  6. race — humankind
  7. suit — to fit
  8. tear — to rip
  9. cold — an illness
  10. cold — not warm
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. tear — from crying
  13. current — electric
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. race — a contest
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. mine — for digging
  19. wake — a trail
  20. suit — in cards
  21. race — the arms race
  22. current — happening now
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. current — of water

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