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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. content — happy
  3. fall — the season
  4. clip — a video
  5. race — the arms race
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. race — a contest
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — to drop
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. clip — for paper
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. track — to keep track
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. track — a path
  17. track — a song
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. rush — hurry
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. clip — to cut
  24. content — the amount

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