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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. cold — an illness
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. pass — a permit
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. rule — government
  7. stock — goods
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. clip — a video
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. cold — not warm
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. rule — a law
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. clip — to cut
  18. stock — shares
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. pitch — completely
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. wake — a trail

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