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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. clip — for paper
  3. staff — employees
  4. plane — a tool
  5. drill — a practice
  6. last — finally
  7. staff — a stick
  8. staff — employees
  9. clip — a video
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. rule — a law
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. spell — letters
  14. clip — to cut
  15. rule — government
  16. last — final
  17. last — to go on
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. cap — a lid
  20. drill — the tool
  21. drill — army training
  22. spell — a short time
  23. spell — magic
  24. cap — a hat

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