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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 chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. net — after costs
  3. rest — what's left
  4. rest — what's left
  5. bank — for money
  6. rock — music
  7. hand — in cards
  8. bank — for money
  9. rest — a break
  10. clip — to cut
  11. bass — low music
  12. rule — government
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. net — in sport
  16. rock — a stone
  17. bank — of a river
  18. hand — help
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. net — for catching
  21. rule — a law
  22. clip — a video
  23. bass — the fish
  24. clip — for paper

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