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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. can — a tin
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. clip — to cut
  8. mine — for digging
  9. clip — a video
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. rule — a law
  12. can — a tin
  13. can — to be able to
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. date — the fruit
  17. clip — for paper
  18. rule — government

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