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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 116 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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. bore — to tire
  3. land — a country
  4. clip — for paper
  5. pit — in a race
  6. land — to come down
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. content — the amount
  10. file — a tool
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. deal — to handle
  13. land — ground
  14. content — happy
  15. bore — to drill
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. clip — to cut
  18. race — humankind
  19. file — a line of people
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. pit — a hole
  22. file — a document
  23. clip — a video
  24. race — a contest

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