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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: snap · fork · bowl · last · march · race · can · clip

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. fork — in a road
  3. clip — to cut
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. snap — to click
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. can — a tin
  9. march — music
  10. march — the month
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. clip — a video
  13. last — to go on
  14. can — a tin
  15. last — final
  16. can — to be able to
  17. clip — for paper
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. march — the month
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. race — a contest
  23. race — humankind
  24. race — the arms race

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