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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. net — after costs
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. net — for catching
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. degree — from a university
  10. clip — a video
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. clip — for paper
  13. race — a contest
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. drill — a practice
  16. pound — a weight
  17. drill — the tool
  18. race — the arms race
  19. degree — an amount
  20. net — in sport
  21. degree — temperature
  22. race — humankind
  23. clip — to cut
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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