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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. clip — to cut
  3. clip — a video
  4. net — in sport
  5. club — for golf
  6. pop — music
  7. pop — to visit
  8. club — a group
  9. net — after costs
  10. pop — soda
  11. charge — a price
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. race — the arms race
  15. scale — in music
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. charge — in control
  18. date — the fruit
  19. scale — size or range
  20. race — humankind
  21. net — for catching
  22. race — a contest
  23. charge — electricity
  24. clip — for paper

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