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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: spell · root · swing · mate · roll · race · clip · file

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. clip — a video
  3. spell — a short time
  4. swing — music
  5. root — of a plant
  6. spell — letters
  7. race — a contest
  8. mate — a partner
  9. root — of a word
  10. roll — a list
  11. swing — in golf
  12. root — the cause
  13. file — a line of people
  14. clip — for paper
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. file — a document
  17. roll — a cake
  18. race — humankind
  19. clip — to cut
  20. race — the arms race
  21. spell — magic
  22. mate — a friend
  23. mate — to breed
  24. swing — to play 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