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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. mate — a partner
  5. spell — magic
  6. clip — a video
  7. mug — a face
  8. mug — a cup
  9. track — a path
  10. rule — government
  11. clip — to cut
  12. ball — a dance
  13. spell — a short time
  14. game — a match
  15. mate — a friend
  16. rule — a law
  17. spell — letters
  18. ball — a great time
  19. track — to keep track
  20. game — wild animals
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. mug — to rob
  23. clip — for paper
  24. track — a song

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