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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. ball — a dance
  4. charge — electricity
  5. clip — for paper
  6. ball — a great time
  7. race — the arms race
  8. race — humankind
  9. sharp — clever
  10. clip — a video
  11. charge — in control
  12. band — a music group
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. race — a contest
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. clip — to cut
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. band — a ring

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