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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. race — humankind
  3. race — the arms race
  4. clip — to cut
  5. face — part of the head
  6. firm — steady
  7. ground — a position
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. wound — an injury
  11. clip — for paper
  12. saw — the tool
  13. face — to confront
  14. game — wild animals
  15. saw — the tool
  16. wound — an injury
  17. firm — a company
  18. ground — crushed
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. firm — decided
  21. race — a contest
  22. clip — a video
  23. game — a match
  24. ground — the earth

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