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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. race — humankind
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. clip — for paper
  5. march — the month
  6. march — the month
  7. game — wild animals
  8. race — the arms race
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. clip — a video
  11. clip — to cut
  12. charge — electricity
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. charge — a price
  16. stock — goods
  17. race — a contest
  18. march — music
  19. game — a match
  20. rush — hurry
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. charge — in control
  24. game — a kind of play

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