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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 116 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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. land — to come down
  3. race — the arms race
  4. land — ground
  5. scale — in music
  6. land — a country
  7. object — a thing
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. clip — for paper
  12. race — humankind
  13. race — a contest
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. object — to protest
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. lie — to recline
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. clip — to cut
  20. object — an aim
  21. scale — size or range
  22. clip — a video
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. deal — to handle

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