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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. clip — for paper
  3. pop — music
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. face — to point toward
  6. firm — decided
  7. scale — size or range
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. scale — in music
  10. rule — a law
  11. face — part of the head
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. track — to keep track
  14. pop — soda
  15. clip — to cut
  16. clip — a video
  17. face — to confront
  18. wake — a trail
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. firm — steady
  21. track — a path
  22. track — a song
  23. rule — government
  24. firm — a company

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