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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. race — humankind
  3. race — a contest
  4. hand — in cards
  5. pit — a hole
  6. object — an aim
  7. kid — to tease
  8. clip — a video
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. race — the arms race
  13. kid — child
  14. object — a thing
  15. object — to protest
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. pit — in a race
  18. fine — all right
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. hand — help
  22. clip — to cut
  23. fine — high quality
  24. clip — for paper

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