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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. spell — magic
  3. race — a contest
  4. clip — a video
  5. race — the arms race
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. press — a publisher
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. spell — letters
  14. spell — a short time
  15. sharp — clever
  16. pit — in a race
  17. press — to push
  18. clip — to cut
  19. race — humankind
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. pit — a hole
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. press — newspapers
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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