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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. rule — government
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. last — to go on
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. last — final
  10. present — a gift
  11. clip — for paper
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. clip — a video
  14. rest — what's left
  15. rule — a law
  16. plane — a tool
  17. present — there
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. clip — to cut
  20. present — the time now
  21. rest — what's left
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. rest — a break
  24. last — finally

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