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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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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: rest · cue · mouse · fall · mine · clip · rash · race

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. clip — to cut
  3. cue — a hint
  4. cue — for pool
  5. race — the arms race
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rest — a break
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. rest — what's left
  10. clip — a video
  11. clip — for paper
  12. fall — to drop
  13. mine — for digging
  14. rash — hasty
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. cue — a signal
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. rash — a series
  19. race — humankind
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. fall — the season
  23. fall — to drop
  24. race — a contest

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