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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. bulb — for light
  3. charge — a price
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. rule — a law
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. charge — in control
  12. pound — a weight
  13. clip — for paper
  14. bulb — for light
  15. clip — to cut
  16. spring — a coil
  17. clip — a video
  18. charge — electricity
  19. wound — an injury
  20. spring — the season
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. spring — of water
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. wound — an injury

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