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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. clip — for paper
  3. ground — the earth
  4. field — farmland
  5. race — the arms race
  6. swing — to play on
  7. clip — a video
  8. capital — money
  9. field — for sport
  10. lie — to recline
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. ground — a position
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. ground — crushed
  17. field — a subject
  18. clip — to cut
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. swing — in golf
  21. swing — music
  22. race — a contest
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. capital — a city

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