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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. bass — low music
  4. rule — a law
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. clip — for paper
  7. hand — in cards
  8. rule — government
  9. bass — the fish
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. clip — a video
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. hand — help
  18. stick — a piece of wood

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