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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: straw · track · clip · face · bank · race · perch · object

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. object — to protest
  3. clip — for paper
  4. race — humankind
  5. track — a path
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. track — a song
  8. bank — for money
  9. track — to keep track
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. face — to confront
  12. clip — to cut
  13. race — the arms race
  14. perch — the fish
  15. bank — for money
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. bank — of a river
  19. object — a thing
  20. face — to point toward
  21. face — part of the head
  22. object — an aim
  23. clip — a video
  24. race — a contest

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