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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  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. kick — a thrill
  2. perch — the fish
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. land — ground
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. rock — a stone
  7. rule — a law
  8. clip — to cut
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. clip — a video
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. bound — tied together
  16. clip — for paper
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. rock — music
  19. kick — in football
  20. land — a country
  21. bound — certain
  22. land — to come down
  23. bound — obliged
  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