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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. bear — the animal
  4. rule — a law
  5. clip — a video
  6. ground — crushed
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. cap — a hat
  9. kid — child
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. cap — a lid
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. kid — to tease
  14. ground — the earth
  15. clip — to cut
  16. rule — government
  17. clip — for paper
  18. cap — of ice
  19. plane — a tool
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. ground — a position
  23. date — the fruit
  24. bear — the animal

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