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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. rest — what's left
  3. clip — to cut
  4. court — of a king
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. clip — for paper
  7. object — a thing
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. rule — a law
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. rest — a break
  12. perch — the fish
  13. clip — a video
  14. rest — what's left
  15. object — to protest
  16. object — an aim
  17. court — of law
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. court — for sport
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. sharp — clever

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