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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: fine · clip · court · object · race · safe · march · charge

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. court — of law
  4. fine — all right
  5. race — humankind
  6. fine — high quality
  7. clip — for paper
  8. race — the arms race
  9. charge — in control
  10. march — music
  11. court — of a king
  12. march — the month
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. clip — a video
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. march — the month
  17. object — to protest
  18. court — for sport
  19. object — an aim
  20. race — a contest
  21. clip — to cut
  22. object — a thing
  23. charge — a price
  24. charge — electricity

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