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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  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. dip — to dunk
  2. court — for sport
  3. clip — for paper
  4. object — to protest
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. file — a document
  7. rule — a law
  8. clip — to cut
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. saw — the tool
  11. dip — to sink
  12. file — a tool
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. court — of law
  15. object — an aim
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. clip — a video
  18. court — of a king
  19. object — a thing
  20. saw — the tool
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. file — a line of people
  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