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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. press — a publisher
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. race — a contest
  5. press — newspapers
  6. clip — a video
  7. march — the month
  8. race — humankind
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. clip — for paper
  11. clip — to cut
  12. march — music
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. press — to push
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. march — the month
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — moving air

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