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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: clip · racket · cabinet · rule · bass · rest

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. rest — what's left
  6. bass — the fish
  7. rest — what's left
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. rule — a law
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. rest — a break
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. clip — a video
  16. clip — to cut
  17. rule — government
  18. clip — for paper

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