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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. clip — a video
  4. race — a contest
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. clip — for paper
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. root — of a word
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. race — humankind
  14. root — the cause
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. clip — to cut
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. kick — in football
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. root — of a plant
  21. pound — a weight
  22. cell — a phone
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. cell — in biology

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