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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: race · clip · cap · ruler · mine · pound · rest · mark

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. race — a contest
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. rest — what's left
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. rest — a break
  7. mark — a grade
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. pound — a weight
  10. rest — what's left
  11. cap — a lid
  12. race — the arms race
  13. clip — to cut
  14. race — humankind
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. cap — a hat
  17. cap — of ice
  18. mine — for digging
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. clip — a video
  23. mark — a trace
  24. ruler — for measuring

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