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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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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: safe · race · straw · plane · cold · mug · bore · capital

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. bore — to drill
  3. capital — money
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. mug — to rob
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. race — the arms race
  10. cold — an illness
  11. mug — a cup
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. mug — a face
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. plane — a tool
  16. cold — not warm
  17. race — humankind
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. bore — to tire
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. capital — a city

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