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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. clip — for paper
  4. ground — the earth
  5. craft — a skill
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. ball — a dance
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. clip — to cut
  10. staff — a stick
  11. rule — a law
  12. staff — employees
  13. craft — boats
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. ground — a position
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. fine — all right
  18. clip — a video
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. ground — crushed
  22. staff — employees
  23. rule — government
  24. fine — high quality

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