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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 120 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 ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. bat — the animal
  3. rule — a law
  4. degree — an amount
  5. clip — a video
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. object — an aim
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. degree — from a university
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. object — to protest
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. clip — to cut
  16. clip — for paper
  17. object — a thing
  18. stand — to bear
  19. rule — government
  20. scale — in music
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. degree — temperature
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. scale — size or range

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