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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. race — humankind
  3. present — a gift
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. race — the arms race
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. present — there
  9. race — a contest
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. clip — for paper
  12. staff — employees
  13. board — to get on
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. clip — a video
  17. degree — an amount
  18. staff — employees
  19. deal — to handle
  20. degree — from a university
  21. clip — to cut
  22. present — the time now
  23. degree — temperature
  24. board — a committee

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