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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. rule — a law
  3. clip — to cut
  4. field — farmland
  5. clip — a video
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. rule — government
  12. stock — goods
  13. stock — shares
  14. drill — a practice
  15. drill — army training
  16. field — for sport
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. drill — the tool
  19. mine — for digging
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. clip — for paper
  22. bark — to shout
  23. field — a subject
  24. mine — an explosive

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