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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 120 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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. scale — in music
  5. race — the arms race
  6. clip — to cut
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. ball — a great time
  9. scale — size or range
  10. drill — army training
  11. chip — for betting
  12. squash — to crush
  13. chip — to eat
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. race — a contest
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. clip — a video
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. squash — the sport
  21. race — humankind
  22. clip — for paper
  23. drill — the tool
  24. drill — a practice

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