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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 116 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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. clip — to cut
  5. rock — a stone
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. cold — an illness
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. rule — government
  11. rock — music
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. charge — in control
  14. rule — a law
  15. charge — a price
  16. charge — electricity
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. clip — for paper
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. vault — a safe
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. cold — not warm
  23. cell — in biology
  24. clip — a video

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