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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: jam · clip · bear · staff · race · cell

  1. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. clip — to cut
  4. cell — a phone
  5. clip — for paper
  6. cell — in biology
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. race — the arms race
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. bear — the animal
  11. clip — a video
  12. staff — a stick
  13. race — humankind
  14. staff — employees
  15. bear — the animal
  16. race — a contest
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. staff — employees

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