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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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. calf — of the leg
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. game — a match
  7. object — an aim
  8. pit — a hole
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. last — to go on
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. last — finally
  13. rule — government
  14. game — wild animals
  15. toast — bread
  16. last — final
  17. object — a thing
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. pit — in a race
  20. object — to protest
  21. clip — for paper
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. clip — a video

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