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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. track — a song
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. rule — a law
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bat — the animal
  7. clip — for paper
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. fine — all right
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. fine — high quality
  12. snap — to click
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. clip — to cut
  15. track — to keep track
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. saw — the tool
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. saw — the tool
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. clip — a video
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. track — a path
  24. bowl — to roll

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