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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. clip — to cut
  3. rule — government
  4. key — for a lock
  5. key — in music
  6. firm — steady
  7. band — a music group
  8. band — a ring
  9. firm — a company
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. key — the most important part
  13. branch — a division
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. firm — decided
  16. clip — a video
  17. clip — for paper
  18. branch — of a bank

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