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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. pitch — completely
  3. clip — to cut
  4. clip — a video
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. rule — a law
  7. kick — in football
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. prune — to trim
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. rule — government
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. band — a ring
  19. prune — to trim
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. clip — for paper
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. ruler — a monarch

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