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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: net · safe · clip · race · swing · pitcher · pop · leaves

  1. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. pop — to visit
  3. net — after costs
  4. swing — in golf
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. race — a contest
  8. clip — a video
  9. clip — to cut
  10. pop — music
  11. swing — to play on
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. race — the arms race
  15. race — humankind
  16. pop — soda
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. net — for catching
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. net — in sport
  21. swing — music
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. clip — for paper
  24. leaves — lets stay

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