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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: toast · mark · season · rush · cold · degree · wound · race

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. race — humankind
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. race — the arms race
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. mark — a grade
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. rush — hurry
  10. race — a contest
  11. season — in sport
  12. season — of the year
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. degree — an amount
  16. wound — an injury
  17. degree — from a university
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. mark — a trace
  20. degree — temperature
  21. cold — an illness
  22. wound — an injury
  23. toast — bread
  24. cold — not warm

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