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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 116 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: pit · clip · snap · straw · firm · race · present · last

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. race — humankind
  3. present — the time now
  4. firm — decided
  5. race — a contest
  6. race — the arms race
  7. pit — in a race
  8. present — there
  9. last — finally
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. clip — a video
  14. last — to go on
  15. firm — a company
  16. snap — to click
  17. last — final
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. clip — to cut
  22. pit — a hole
  23. clip — for paper
  24. firm — steady

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