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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 116 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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. race — the arms race
  3. clip — a video
  4. capital — a city
  5. pass — a permit
  6. field — for sport
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. clip — for paper
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. race — humankind
  11. field — farmland
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. bore — to drill
  14. race — a contest
  15. stand — to bear
  16. kid — to tease
  17. capital — money
  18. clip — to cut
  19. kid — child
  20. field — a subject
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. bore — to tire
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. pass — to spend time

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