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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. spell — letters
  3. rule — a law
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. scale — size or range
  6. spell — a short time
  7. rest — what's left
  8. clip — to cut
  9. clip — for paper
  10. lean — thin
  11. scale — in music
  12. rule — government
  13. rest — a break
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. rest — what's left
  16. lean — to bend
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. clip — a video
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. prune — to trim
  21. prune — to trim
  22. bound — tied together
  23. bound — certain
  24. bound — obliged

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