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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. object — to protest
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. clip — to cut
  5. kid — to tease
  6. object — a thing
  7. root — of a word
  8. bear — the animal
  9. pound — a weight
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. root — the cause
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. clip — for paper
  15. root — of a plant
  16. kid — child
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. bear — the animal
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. wake — a trail
  22. clip — a video
  23. object — an aim
  24. rule — government

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