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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. toast — bread
  3. clip — for paper
  4. plane — a tool
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. date — the fruit
  8. race — a contest
  9. clip — to cut
  10. swing — in golf
  11. prune — to trim
  12. swing — to play on
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. clip — a video
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. prune — to trim
  20. swing — music
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. race — humankind
  24. prune — the fruit

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