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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 120 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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. clip — to cut
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. content — the amount
  5. race — the arms race
  6. clip — for paper
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. race — humankind
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. content — happy
  15. hand — in cards
  16. race — a contest
  17. drill — a practice
  18. hand — help
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. foot — a measure
  21. clip — a video
  22. drill — army training
  23. drill — the tool
  24. content — videos and posts

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