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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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Word bank
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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: chair · mate · cap · clip · stick · race

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. chair — a leader
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. clip — for paper
  5. race — humankind
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. race — the arms race
  8. race — a contest
  9. cap — of ice
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. mate — a friend
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. mate — to breed
  14. cap — a hat
  15. cap — a lid
  16. mate — a partner
  17. clip — to cut
  18. chair — to sit on

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