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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. tube — the underground
  3. cue — a hint
  4. craft — a skill
  5. clip — a video
  6. rush — hurry
  7. clip — to cut
  8. craft — boats
  9. fall — to drop
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. race — the arms race
  12. clip — for paper
  13. bound — certain
  14. tube — a container
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. race — a contest
  17. fall — the season
  18. cue — for pool
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. fall — to drop
  22. race — humankind
  23. cue — a signal
  24. bound — obliged

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