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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: clip · pitch · wax · hide · sharp · bat · race · drill

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. drill — the tool
  3. pitch — completely
  4. race — the arms race
  5. race — a contest
  6. drill — army training
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. clip — to cut
  9. race — humankind
  10. drill — a practice
  11. clip — for paper
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. bat — the animal
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. wax — to grow
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. sharp — clever
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. clip — a video

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