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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. race — the arms race
  3. hand — help
  4. staff — a stick
  5. clip — for paper
  6. clip — a video
  7. staff — employees
  8. last — finally
  9. race — a contest
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. bark — to shout
  12. hand — in cards
  13. staff — employees
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. clip — to cut
  17. bulb — for light
  18. last — to go on
  19. last — final
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. race — humankind
  24. bulb — for light

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