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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. kick — in football
  3. root — of a word
  4. file — a document
  5. clip — to cut
  6. snap — to click
  7. fine — high quality
  8. clip — for paper
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. root — the cause
  13. land — a country
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. clip — a video
  16. land — to come down
  17. file — a tool
  18. fine — all right
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. land — ground
  21. rule — government
  22. root — of a plant
  23. file — a line of people
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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