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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. rule — a law
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. rule — government
  6. snap — to click
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. branch — a division
  12. kick — in football
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. clip — a video
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. clip — to cut
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. bowl — a dish

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