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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 124 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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  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. spell — letters
  2. can — to be able to
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. rest — what's left
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. clip — for paper
  7. can — a tin
  8. clip — a video
  9. can — a tin
  10. rest — a break
  11. spring — a coil
  12. spell — a short time
  13. rule — a law
  14. spring — of water
  15. spring — the season
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. rest — what's left
  19. clip — to cut
  20. spell — magic
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. vault — a safe
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  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