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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. race — a contest
  4. clip — to cut
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. race — the arms race
  7. season — in sport
  8. race — humankind
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. clip — a video
  12. firm — steady
  13. sharp — clever
  14. game — wild animals
  15. game — a match
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. season — of the year
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. firm — decided
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. clip — for paper
  24. firm — a company

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