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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: fall · trunk · cold · race · staff · chest · chip · scale

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. cold — an illness
  3. staff — employees
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. race — a contest
  7. fall — the season
  8. staff — employees
  9. chest — of your body
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. chip — for betting
  12. chip — to eat
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. chest — of your body
  15. race — humankind
  16. scale — in music
  17. fall — to drop
  18. chest — a box
  19. staff — a stick
  20. cold — not warm
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. scale — size or range
  24. fall — to drop

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