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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. clip — a video
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. ground — a position
  5. race — humankind
  6. rule — government
  7. ball — a great time
  8. field — a subject
  9. field — for sport
  10. kick — in football
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. race — the arms race
  13. ground — the earth
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. field — farmland
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. clip — to cut
  18. race — a contest
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. ground — crushed
  21. rule — a law
  22. ball — a dance
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. kick — with a leg

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