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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 120 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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. rule — a law
  4. race — the arms race
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. pop — to visit
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. wax — to grow
  10. clip — to cut
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. wake — a trail
  13. pop — music
  14. race — humankind
  15. clip — a video
  16. pop — soda
  17. race — a contest
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. hand — in cards
  23. hand — help
  24. clip — for paper

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