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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. clip — to cut
  3. chip — for betting
  4. degree — an amount
  5. march — the month
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. march — the month
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. clip — a video
  10. rash — hasty
  11. race — humankind
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. race — the arms race
  14. race — a contest
  15. degree — temperature
  16. clip — for paper
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. degree — from a university
  21. march — music
  22. chip — to eat
  23. stand — to bear
  24. racket — a loud noise

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