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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. squash — the sport
  3. chair — a leader
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. current — happening now
  6. current — of water
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. race — a contest
  10. squash — to crush
  11. clip — a video
  12. row — a line
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. mate — to breed
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. row — to paddle
  17. race — the arms race
  18. sharp — clever
  19. mate — a partner
  20. clip — for paper
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. mate — a friend
  23. clip — to cut
  24. current — electric

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