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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. clip — for paper
  3. clip — to cut
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. rule — government
  6. race — a contest
  7. clip — a video
  8. shower — rain
  9. race — the arms race
  10. object — a thing
  11. ground — a position
  12. ground — the earth
  13. ground — crushed
  14. pass — a permit
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. rule — a law
  20. race — humankind
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. object — to protest
  24. shower — to wash

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