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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. race — a contest
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. clip — for paper
  7. row — to paddle
  8. clip — to cut
  9. race — the arms race
  10. shower — rain
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. vault — a safe
  14. shower — to wash
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. file — a document
  17. bulb — for light
  18. clip — a video
  19. file — a line of people
  20. row — a line
  21. bulb — for light
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. file — a tool
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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