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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. track — a song
  3. ground — a position
  4. suit — to fit
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. ground — crushed
  7. clip — to cut
  8. rule — a law
  9. suit — in cards
  10. lie — to recline
  11. clip — a video
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. fork — in a road
  14. rule — government
  15. game — a match
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. track — a path
  18. ground — the earth
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. suit — clothes
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. clip — for paper
  24. game — wild animals

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