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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  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 — magic
  2. last — to go on
  3. spell — letters
  4. rule — a law
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. fork — in a road
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. last — final
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. spell — a short time
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. clip — a video
  16. clip — for paper
  17. last — finally
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. clip — to cut
  22. date — the fruit
  23. bowl — to roll
  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