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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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. swing — in golf
  3. last — finally
  4. land — a country
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. land — ground
  7. race — a contest
  8. clip — to cut
  9. swing — music
  10. face — to confront
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. last — to go on
  13. last — final
  14. net — after costs
  15. swing — to play on
  16. land — to come down
  17. face — to point toward
  18. race — humankind
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. clip — a video
  21. face — part of the head
  22. clip — for paper
  23. net — for catching
  24. net — in sport

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