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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. net — for catching
  3. clip — to cut
  4. root — the cause
  5. root — of a word
  6. wind — moving air
  7. net — in sport
  8. rule — government
  9. squash — to crush
  10. object — a thing
  11. object — an aim
  12. wind — moving air
  13. clip — for paper
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. root — of a plant
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. clip — a video
  19. squash — the sport
  20. rule — a law
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. net — after costs
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. rule — to rule out

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