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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 120 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: saw · clip · race · pitch · cell · squash · dip · band

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. clip — a video
  4. saw — the tool
  5. band — a ring
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. dip — to sink
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. race — humankind
  11. race — the arms race
  12. squash — to crush
  13. band — a music group
  14. clip — to cut
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. race — a contest
  19. saw — the tool
  20. pitch — completely
  21. cell — a phone
  22. squash — the sport
  23. clip — for paper
  24. pitch — a sports field

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