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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: last · pass · bound · mate · race · mouse · chest · squash

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. squash — to crush
  3. chest — of your body
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. last — finally
  6. race — a contest
  7. bound — tied together
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. mate — to breed
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. pass — a permit
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. last — final
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. bound — obliged
  17. mate — a partner
  18. last — to go on
  19. bound — certain
  20. race — the arms race
  21. race — humankind
  22. chest — a box
  23. mate — a friend
  24. chest — of your body

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