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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. clip — a video
  3. chair — a leader
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. race — humankind
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. race — the arms race
  8. clip — for paper
  9. fall — to drop
  10. saw — the tool
  11. swing — in golf
  12. bore — to drill
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. fall — to drop
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. fall — the season
  17. rash — a series
  18. race — a contest
  19. swing — music
  20. clip — to cut
  21. swing — to play on
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. rash — hasty
  24. bore — to tire

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