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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. clip — for paper
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. march — the month
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. squash — to crush
  8. saw — the tool
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. clip — a video
  11. saw — the tool
  12. race — the arms race
  13. race — humankind
  14. branch — a division
  15. march — music
  16. march — the month
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. squash — the sport
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. wax — to grow
  24. clip — to cut

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