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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  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. race — the arms race
  2. race — a contest
  3. can — a tin
  4. swing — in golf
  5. mate — to breed
  6. swing — music
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. bear — the animal
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. swing — to play on
  11. mate — a friend
  12. mine — for digging
  13. hand — in cards
  14. mate — a partner
  15. clip — for paper
  16. bear — the animal
  17. clip — to cut
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. can — to be able to
  20. race — humankind
  21. hand — help
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. can — a tin
  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