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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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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 · branch · mate · clip · bulb · dip · tear · ruler

  1. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  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. bulb — for light
  2. dip — to sink
  3. tear — from crying
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. bulb — for light
  6. mate — a friend
  7. clip — for paper
  8. mate — a partner
  9. tear — from crying
  10. clip — a video
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. mate — to breed
  14. branch — a division
  15. race — a contest
  16. race — humankind
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. tear — to rip
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. clip — to cut
  23. race — the arms race
  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