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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. clip — a video
  4. rule — government
  5. kid — to tease
  6. wake — a trail
  7. march — the month
  8. rule — a law
  9. craft — boats
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. march — music
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. clip — to cut
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. march — the month
  19. craft — a skill
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. kid — child

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