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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. chest — a box
  3. object — a thing
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. race — humankind
  7. object — an aim
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. clip — to cut
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. game — wild animals
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. clip — for paper
  14. object — to protest
  15. game — a match
  16. rush — hurry
  17. chest — of your body
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. chest — of your body
  21. race — a contest
  22. race — the arms race
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. clip — a video

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