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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 spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. race — humankind
  3. race — a contest
  4. capital — money
  5. clip — for paper
  6. fine — high quality
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. wind — moving air
  9. clip — to cut
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. clip — a video
  12. capital — a city
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. race — the arms race
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. wind — moving air
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. fine — all right
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. bark — to shout

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