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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. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. pop — music
  5. wind — moving air
  6. clip — for paper
  7. clip — to cut
  8. pop — to visit
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. pop — soda
  11. rule — government
  12. land — ground
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. spell — a short time
  15. wind — moving air
  16. spell — letters
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. spell — magic
  20. rule — a law
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. land — a country
  23. clip — a video
  24. land — to come down

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