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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. pop — to visit
  3. wound — an injury
  4. race — the arms race
  5. clip — to cut
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. pop — music
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. wound — an injury
  11. cell — in biology
  12. clip — a video
  13. clip — for paper
  14. cell — a phone
  15. tube — a container
  16. tube — the underground
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. pop — soda
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. race — humankind
  21. vault — a safe
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. tube — in a tire

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