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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 120 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: temple · object · rush · tear · swing · race · stock · fine

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. fine — high quality
  4. swing — in golf
  5. race — humankind
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. object — an aim
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. fine — all right
  11. object — a thing
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. stock — goods
  15. rush — hurry
  16. stock — shares
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — to rip
  19. race — the arms race
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. swing — to play on
  22. race — a contest
  23. swing — music
  24. tear — from crying

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