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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. season — of the year
  4. season — in sport
  5. key — for a lock
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. rash — a series
  8. clip — to cut
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. key — in music
  12. rash — hasty
  13. wound — an injury
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. wound — an injury
  16. race — humankind
  17. clip — for paper
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. bank — for money
  20. key — the most important part
  21. race — a contest
  22. clip — a video
  23. bank — for money
  24. bank — of a river

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