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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: march · cold · wave · cabinet · chip · cap · race · hand

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. chip — for betting
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. cap — a hat
  7. cap — of ice
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. race — a contest
  10. cap — a lid
  11. cold — an illness
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. march — music
  14. chip — to eat
  15. race — humankind
  16. march — the month
  17. cold — not warm
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. race — the arms race
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. march — the month
  22. hand — help
  23. hand — in cards
  24. cabinet — ministers

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