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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 don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. spring — the season
  6. fine — high quality
  7. rock — a stone
  8. degree — temperature
  9. fine — all right
  10. rule — government
  11. mine — for digging
  12. clip — to cut
  13. degree — from a university
  14. rule — a law
  15. clip — for paper
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. degree — an amount
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. rock — music
  21. spring — a coil
  22. spring — of water
  23. toast — bread
  24. clip — a video

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