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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 · fall · key · clip · craft · row · staff · date

  1. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. clip — to cut
  3. fall — to drop
  4. staff — employees
  5. staff — employees
  6. race — the arms race
  7. craft — boats
  8. key — for a lock
  9. key — the most important part
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. date — the fruit
  12. clip — a video
  13. fall — the season
  14. row — a line
  15. race — humankind
  16. race — a contest
  17. craft — a skill
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. staff — a stick
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. fall — to drop
  23. row — to paddle
  24. clip — for paper

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