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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 120 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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. clip — for paper
  3. clip — to cut
  4. rule — a law
  5. rule — government
  6. last — final
  7. last — to go on
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. rest — a break
  10. current — happening now
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. last — finally
  15. current — of water
  16. squash — the sport
  17. current — electric
  18. present — a gift
  19. squash — to crush
  20. present — there
  21. rest — what's left
  22. clip — a video
  23. present — the time now
  24. squash — the vegetable

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