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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: can · pit · wound · race · kid · cold · lie · fan

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. wound — an injury
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. kid — to tease
  7. race — a contest
  8. can — a tin
  9. pit — in a race
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. cold — not warm
  12. cold — an illness
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. wound — an injury
  16. can — to be able to
  17. lie — to recline
  18. kid — child
  19. race — humankind
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. can — a tin
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. race — the arms race
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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