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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. bear — the animal
  4. scale — size or range
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. clip — for paper
  10. clip — to cut
  11. race — humankind
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. rush — hurry
  18. scale — in music
  19. season — of the year
  20. race — the arms race
  21. season — in sport
  22. race — a contest
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. clip — a video

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