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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 116 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 need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. clip — to cut
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. rule — government
  6. rule — a law
  7. rash — a series
  8. race — a contest
  9. race — the arms race
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. drill — army training
  14. clip — a video
  15. drill — a practice
  16. race — humankind
  17. rash — hasty
  18. clip — for paper

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