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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: lean · fine · race · ground · drill · sharp · straw · clip

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. clip — for paper
  3. race — humankind
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. sharp — clever
  6. ground — the earth
  7. lean — to bend
  8. clip — a video
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. drill — the tool
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. race — a contest
  13. drill — army training
  14. fine — all right
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. ground — a position
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. race — the arms race
  19. ground — crushed
  20. lean — thin
  21. fine — high quality
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. drill — a practice

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