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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. race — humankind
  3. rest — what's left
  4. bear — the animal
  5. ball — a dance
  6. face — part of the head
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. face — to confront
  9. bear — the animal
  10. bore — to drill
  11. snap — to click
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. clip — a video
  14. rest — what's left
  15. clip — to cut
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. rest — a break
  18. clip — for paper
  19. race — the arms race
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. race — a contest
  22. face — to point toward
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. bore — to tire

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