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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. last — to go on
  5. clip — for paper
  6. pop — to visit
  7. wax — to grow
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. tear — from crying
  10. last — finally
  11. pop — soda
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. pop — music
  14. clip — a video
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. pound — a weight
  18. clip — to cut
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. last — final
  21. rule — government
  22. tear — to rip
  23. tear — from crying
  24. wax — for sculpting

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