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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 116 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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. shower — to wash
  3. rule — government
  4. rule — a law
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. mate — to breed
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. mate — a partner
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. clip — to cut
  13. mate — a friend
  14. mug — a cup
  15. hand — help
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. wax — to grow
  19. clip — for paper
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. mug — a face
  22. hand — in cards
  23. clip — a video
  24. mug — to rob

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