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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: ground · hide · deal · staff · race · date · rest · cold

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. date — the fruit
  4. race — humankind
  5. rest — what's left
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. deal — to handle
  11. ground — the earth
  12. cold — not warm
  13. staff — employees
  14. staff — employees
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. cold — an illness
  17. ground — a position
  18. ground — crushed
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. race — a contest
  21. race — the arms race
  22. staff — a stick
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. rest — a break

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