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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: ruler · cold · ball · bank · race · chest · bore · mug

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. cold — an illness
  3. race — a contest
  4. ball — a great time
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. bank — for money
  7. mug — a face
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. bank — for money
  10. mug — to rob
  11. cold — not warm
  12. chest — of your body
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. bank — of a river
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. chest — of your body
  17. ball — a dance
  18. mug — a cup
  19. chest — a box
  20. race — humankind
  21. bore — to drill
  22. race — the arms race
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. bore — to tire

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