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

Word bank: file · pass · march · race · mark · bat · tube · clip

  1. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to spend time
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. march — the month
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. race — the arms race
  7. pass — a permit
  8. clip — to cut
  9. march — the month
  10. mark — a trace
  11. file — a tool
  12. march — music
  13. tube — a container
  14. bat — the animal
  15. race — humankind
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. race — a contest
  18. file — a line of people
  19. mark — a grade
  20. tube — the underground
  21. file — a document
  22. clip — a video
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. clip — for paper

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