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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. rule — government
  3. current — electric
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. row — to paddle
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. squash — the sport
  10. club — a group
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. rule — a law
  13. current — of water
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. current — happening now
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. clip — a video
  19. row — a line
  20. squash — to crush
  21. clip — for paper
  22. club — for dancing
  23. clip — to cut
  24. squash — the vegetable

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