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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. charge — a price
  3. court — of a king
  4. clip — for paper
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. clip — to cut
  7. march — music
  8. charge — in control
  9. clip — a video
  10. kick — in football
  11. hand — in cards
  12. last — finally
  13. last — final
  14. charge — electricity
  15. rule — government
  16. hand — help
  17. court — of law
  18. last — to go on
  19. court — for sport
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. march — the month
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. rule — a law
  24. kick — a thrill

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