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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. race — the arms race
  4. clip — for paper
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. season — of the year
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. firm — decided
  11. race — humankind
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. firm — a company
  16. race — a contest
  17. season — in sport
  18. mine — for digging
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. clip — a video
  21. bark — to shout
  22. firm — steady
  23. clip — to cut
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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