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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. clip — to cut
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. kick — in football
  5. wind — moving air
  6. race — a contest
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. race — the arms race
  10. bore — to tire
  11. tear — to rip
  12. clip — for paper
  13. bore — to drill
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. dip — to sink
  16. clip — a video
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. tear — from crying
  23. kick — a thrill
  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