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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. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. race — the arms race
  4. degree — from a university
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. clip — to cut
  7. clip — a video
  8. rush — hurry
  9. tear — from crying
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. race — humankind
  15. tear — from crying
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. foot — a measure
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. tear — to rip
  20. clip — for paper
  21. race — a contest
  22. degree — temperature
  23. degree — an amount
  24. rush — a thrill

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