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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. clip — a video
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. track — a path
  7. clip — to cut
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. track — to keep track
  10. track — a song
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. pass — a permit
  13. clip — for paper
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. rule — government
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. chest — a box
  20. chest — of your body
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. chest — of your body
  23. rule — a law
  24. temple — a place of worship

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