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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. clip — a video
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. clip — for paper
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. bore — to tire
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. current — happening now
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. rule — a law
  12. bass — low music
  13. current — of water
  14. cold — not warm
  15. rule — government
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. clip — to cut
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. stand — to bear
  20. bore — to drill
  21. cold — an illness
  22. current — electric
  23. snap — to click
  24. bore — gave birth

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