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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. clip — a video
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. charge — a price
  6. charge — electricity
  7. chest — a box
  8. rule — government
  9. charge — in control
  10. clip — to cut
  11. chest — of your body
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. clip — for paper
  15. press — a publisher
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — from crying
  18. press — newspapers
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. chest — of your body
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. chair — a leader
  23. tear — to rip
  24. press — to push

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