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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. tube — the underground
  3. press — to push
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. club — for golf
  7. rest — what's left
  8. spell — letters
  9. rest — what's left
  10. press — newspapers
  11. rest — a break
  12. press — a publisher
  13. club — for dancing
  14. clip — to cut
  15. club — a group
  16. spell — magic
  17. clip — for paper
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. spell — a short time
  21. tube — a container
  22. pitch — completely
  23. rule — a law
  24. clip — a video

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