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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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. race — a contest
  4. track — a song
  5. clip — a video
  6. clip — for paper
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. pass — a permit
  9. rule — a law
  10. bound — obliged
  11. race — humankind
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. race — the arms race
  16. track — to keep track
  17. bound — tied together
  18. deal — to handle
  19. clip — to cut
  20. pitch — completely
  21. rule — government
  22. track — a path
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. bound — certain

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