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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. mate — to breed
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. pit — a hole
  6. band — a ring
  7. bulb — for light
  8. rule — government
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. mate — a friend
  12. lean — to bend
  13. scale — in music
  14. clip — to cut
  15. scale — size or range
  16. band — a music group
  17. mate — a partner
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. bulb — for light
  21. clip — a video
  22. lean — thin
  23. rule — a law
  24. pit — in a race

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