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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. fork — in a road
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. present — the time now
  5. race — humankind
  6. march — the month
  7. present — there
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. capital — money
  10. foot — a measure
  11. present — a gift
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. capital — a city
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. march — music
  16. clip — a video
  17. vault — a safe
  18. clip — to cut
  19. race — the arms race
  20. march — the month
  21. race — a contest
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. capital — a big letter

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