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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. drill — army training
  3. clip — for paper
  4. object — an aim
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. race — a contest
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. clip — a video
  11. fall — to drop
  12. race — the arms race
  13. fall — to drop
  14. object — a thing
  15. lean — to bend
  16. wind — moving air
  17. clip — to cut
  18. race — humankind
  19. fall — the season
  20. drill — a practice
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. lean — thin
  23. object — to protest
  24. wind — moving air

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