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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: march · clip · safe · vault · coach · race · rash · tube

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. vault — a safe
  7. clip — for paper
  8. march — music
  9. race — humankind
  10. tube — the underground
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. race — the arms race
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. rash — hasty
  18. march — the month
  19. race — a contest
  20. rash — a series
  21. march — the month
  22. clip — a video
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. tube — a container

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