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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 · bound · chest · mark · net · clip · lash · drill

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. bound — obliged
  4. race — a contest
  5. bound — tied together
  6. clip — for paper
  7. net — for catching
  8. clip — to cut
  9. mark — a grade
  10. race — the arms race
  11. drill — the tool
  12. chest — of your body
  13. net — after costs
  14. drill — army training
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. net — in sport
  18. clip — a video
  19. drill — a practice
  20. chest — of your body
  21. mark — a trace
  22. bound — certain
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. race — humankind

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