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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. clip — for paper
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. clip — to cut
  5. foot — a measure
  6. kick — in football
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. pass — a permit
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. clip — a video
  13. track — to keep track
  14. track — a song
  15. rule — government
  16. rule — a law
  17. chair — a leader
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. mine — for digging
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. track — a path
  24. pass — to succeed

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