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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. land — a country
  4. land — to come down
  5. rule — government
  6. spell — letters
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. pop — soda
  9. craft — a skill
  10. pop — to visit
  11. clip — for paper
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. craft — boats
  14. saw — the tool
  15. clip — to cut
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. spell — a short time
  19. rule — a law
  20. clip — a video
  21. saw — the tool
  22. pop — music
  23. land — ground
  24. spell — magic

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