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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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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: season · pitcher · bank · pop · lash · clip · object · race

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. race — the arms race
  7. season — in sport
  8. race — a contest
  9. bank — for money
  10. pop — to visit
  11. bank — for money
  12. clip — for paper
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. object — an aim
  15. race — humankind
  16. pop — soda
  17. clip — a video
  18. season — of the year
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. object — a thing
  21. bank — of a river
  22. clip — to cut
  23. object — to protest
  24. season — to add flavour

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