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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. rule — government
  3. rule — a law
  4. saw — the tool
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. swing — music
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. kick — in football
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. clip — a video
  11. mark — a trace
  12. tube — a container
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. swing — in golf
  15. swing — to play on
  16. saw — the tool
  17. tube — the underground
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. clip — for paper
  21. clip — to cut
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. mark — a grade

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