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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: race · arm · charge · pound · branch · key · clip · bass

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. charge — electricity
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. race — the arms race
  5. clip — to cut
  6. charge — a price
  7. key — for a lock
  8. clip — a video
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. key — in music
  12. race — humankind
  13. pound — a weight
  14. branch — a division
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. key — the most important part
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. bass — the fish
  21. race — a contest
  22. charge — in control
  23. bass — low music
  24. branch — of a tree

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