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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. march — the month
  4. clip — for paper
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. saw — the tool
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. march — the month
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. race — humankind
  13. race — the arms race
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. march — music
  18. clip — to cut
  19. race — a contest
  20. band — a music group
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. clip — a video
  23. saw — the tool
  24. band — a ring

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