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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. clip — a video
  5. mate — a friend
  6. mate — a partner
  7. race — the arms race
  8. race — humankind
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. race — a contest
  13. date — the fruit
  14. cap — of ice
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. mate — to breed
  18. snap — to click
  19. cap — a lid
  20. clip — to cut
  21. clip — for paper
  22. cap — a hat
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. chair — a leader

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