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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 120 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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  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. file — a line of people
  2. file — a tool
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. press — to push
  5. craft — a skill
  6. clip — for paper
  7. press — newspapers
  8. press — a publisher
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. rule — government
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. file — a document
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. wind — moving air
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. fork — in a road
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. clip — to cut
  21. wind — moving air
  22. rule — a law
  23. craft — boats
  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