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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 116 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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. chip — for betting
  3. rule — government
  4. race — the arms race
  5. pop — to visit
  6. race — humankind
  7. race — a contest
  8. clip — for paper
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. ball — a dance
  11. rest — what's left
  12. rest — a break
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. fall — to drop
  15. ball — a great time
  16. chip — to eat
  17. clip — to cut
  18. pop — music
  19. rule — a law
  20. rest — what's left
  21. clip — a video
  22. fall — the season
  23. pop — soda
  24. fall — to drop

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