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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. mug — a face
  4. swing — to play on
  5. race — humankind
  6. hand — help
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. mug — a cup
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. race — the arms race
  11. present — the time now
  12. dip — to sink
  13. clip — for paper
  14. clip — a video
  15. mug — to rob
  16. clip — to cut
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. present — a gift
  20. race — a contest
  21. present — there
  22. swing — music
  23. hand — in cards
  24. swing — in golf

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