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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: clip · pound · chip · key · board · march · press · race

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. press — a publisher
  3. chip — to eat
  4. march — the month
  5. race — a contest
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. pound — a weight
  9. board — a committee
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. key — the most important part
  12. chip — for betting
  13. march — the month
  14. board — to get on
  15. race — the arms race
  16. press — to push
  17. press — newspapers
  18. race — humankind
  19. clip — to cut
  20. key — in music
  21. clip — for paper
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. key — for a lock
  24. clip — a video

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