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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. rule — government
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. clip — a video
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. mug — to rob
  9. present — there
  10. present — the time now
  11. cold — an illness
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. rule — a law
  15. clip — to cut
  16. mug — a face
  17. clip — for paper
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. chair — a leader
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. cold — not warm
  23. mug — a cup
  24. pitcher — a jug

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