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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. root — of a plant
  4. clip — to cut
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. pitch — completely
  8. mark — a grade
  9. clip — a video
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. rule — government
  12. root — of a word
  13. object — to protest
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. root — the cause
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. branch — a division
  18. object — a thing
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. object — an aim
  21. clip — for paper
  22. mine — for digging
  23. mark — a trace
  24. rule — a law

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