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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 116 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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. fall — to drop
  4. cap — a hat
  5. clip — for paper
  6. cap — of ice
  7. fall — the season
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. bound — tied together
  10. bound — certain
  11. saw — the tool
  12. bound — obliged
  13. chip — to eat
  14. sharp — clever
  15. chip — for betting
  16. court — for sport
  17. clip — to cut
  18. court — of law
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. cap — a lid
  21. fall — to drop
  22. clip — a video
  23. saw — the tool
  24. court — of a king

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