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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: swing · clip · race · pit · game · firm · dip · lie

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. swing — music
  3. clip — to cut
  4. dip — to sink
  5. firm — a company
  6. game — a match
  7. race — the arms race
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. firm — steady
  10. swing — to play on
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. swing — in golf
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. lie — to recline
  15. race — a contest
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. pit — in a race
  19. game — wild animals
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. firm — decided
  22. pit — a hole
  23. clip — a video
  24. race — humankind

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