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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. staff — employees
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bear — the animal
  7. clip — for paper
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. rest — what's left
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. rule — government
  12. rule — a law
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. branch — a division
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. clip — to cut
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. rest — a break
  19. rest — what's left
  20. clip — a video
  21. staff — employees
  22. date — the fruit
  23. staff — a stick
  24. date — on the calendar

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