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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. clip — a video
  4. lean — thin
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. spring — of water
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. toast — bread
  9. cap — a hat
  10. clip — for paper
  11. spring — a coil
  12. mark — a trace
  13. rule — government
  14. cap — a lid
  15. lean — to bend
  16. chair — a leader
  17. spring — the season
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. rule — a law
  21. clip — to cut
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. cap — of ice

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