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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. clip — to cut
  3. face — part of the head
  4. band — a ring
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. band — a music group
  7. club — a group
  8. club — for golf
  9. race — humankind
  10. key — the most important part
  11. clip — a video
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. face — to confront
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. club — for dancing
  16. cap — of ice
  17. key — for a lock
  18. race — a contest
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. clip — for paper
  21. cap — a lid
  22. key — in music
  23. cap — a hat
  24. race — the arms race

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