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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: ruler · track · kid · fine · scale · foot · clip · race

  1. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. kid — to tease
  3. track — a path
  4. fine — high quality
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. clip — for paper
  8. clip — a video
  9. clip — to cut
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. scale — in music
  12. track — to keep track
  13. fine — all right
  14. race — a contest
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. race — the arms race
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. track — a song
  19. scale — size or range
  20. kid — child
  21. race — humankind
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. foot — a measure

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