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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. can — a tin
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. game — a match
  5. rule — government
  6. can — to be able to
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. game — wild animals
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. clip — to cut
  14. pound — a weight
  15. rule — a law
  16. clip — for paper
  17. perch — the fish
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. clip — a video
  20. shower — to wash
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. can — a tin
  24. shower — rain

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