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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. present — there
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. capital — money
  5. present — a gift
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. bulb — for light
  8. present — the time now
  9. race — a contest
  10. season — in sport
  11. bound — certain
  12. clip — a video
  13. season — of the year
  14. clip — to cut
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. bound — obliged
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. race — the arms race
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. bulb — for light
  21. clip — for paper
  22. capital — a city
  23. bound — tied together
  24. season — to add flavour

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