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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. race — a contest
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. sharp — clever
  8. club — a group
  9. race — humankind
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. march — music
  12. clip — a video
  13. race — the arms race
  14. kick — in football
  15. club — for dancing
  16. club — for golf
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. clip — to cut
  20. deal — to handle
  21. march — the month
  22. march — the month
  23. clip — for paper
  24. kick — with a leg

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