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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: race · mug · cap · dip · firm · pitcher · charge · season

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. charge — electricity
  5. mug — to rob
  6. mug — a face
  7. season — in sport
  8. cap — of ice
  9. dip — to sink
  10. cap — a hat
  11. firm — steady
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. charge — in control
  14. mug — a cup
  15. cap — a lid
  16. firm — decided
  17. charge — a price
  18. season — of the year
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. race — a contest
  23. race — the arms race
  24. firm — a company

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