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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. rule — a law
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. charge — in control
  5. clip — to cut
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. kick — in football
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. clip — a video
  10. land — a country
  11. chest — a box
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. charge — electricity
  15. clip — for paper
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. chest — of your body
  18. land — ground
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. rule — government
  21. charge — a price
  22. land — to come down
  23. wound — an injury
  24. chest — of your body

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