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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 120 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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. race — a contest
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. clip — to cut
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. clip — a video
  8. staff — a stick
  9. staff — employees
  10. lean — thin
  11. object — an aim
  12. lean — to bend
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. object — a thing
  15. bat — the animal
  16. net — in sport
  17. net — after costs
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. staff — employees
  20. race — humankind
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. object — to protest
  23. clip — for paper
  24. net — for catching

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