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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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. clip — to cut
  4. snap — to click
  5. board — a committee
  6. net — for catching
  7. bore — to tire
  8. rule — a law
  9. bound — obliged
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. bore — to drill
  12. clip — for paper
  13. clip — a video
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. bound — tied together
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. net — after costs
  21. net — in sport
  22. bound — certain
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. rule — government

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