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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. rule — government
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. clip — a video
  5. wound — an injury
  6. drill — army training
  7. band — a ring
  8. clip — for paper
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. drill — the tool
  12. pop — soda
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. band — a music group
  15. clip — to cut
  16. rush — hurry
  17. pop — music
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. rule — a law
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. drill — a practice
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. pop — to visit

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