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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. ground — a position
  4. clip — a video
  5. pass — a permit
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. ground — the earth
  8. race — the arms race
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. race — a contest
  11. swing — in golf
  12. ground — crushed
  13. race — humankind
  14. swing — music
  15. field — a subject
  16. sharp — clever
  17. swing — to play on
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. clip — to cut
  21. field — farmland
  22. clip — for paper
  23. field — for sport
  24. bay — a horse colour

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