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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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. clip — to cut
  3. rule — government
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. clip — a video
  7. tube — a container
  8. staff — employees
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. file — a tool
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. staff — employees
  13. stock — shares
  14. wax — to grow
  15. tube — the underground
  16. stock — goods
  17. file — a line of people
  18. staff — a stick
  19. file — a document
  20. clip — for paper
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. rule — a law

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