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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. lie — to recline
  4. clip — to cut
  5. saw — the tool
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. scale — in music
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. clip — for paper
  14. saw — the tool
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. clip — a video
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. scale — size or range
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. rule — a law
  24. pass — a permit

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