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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. game — a match
  3. present — the time now
  4. clip — for paper
  5. key — the most important part
  6. scale — in music
  7. clip — a video
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. stand — to bear
  10. key — for a lock
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. race — humankind
  14. present — there
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. present — a gift
  17. game — wild animals
  18. scale — size or range
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. race — the arms race
  22. key — in music
  23. race — a contest
  24. pitcher — a jug

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