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

Word bank: track · rule · ball · ground · straw · clip

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. ground — the earth
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. clip — for paper
  6. ground — crushed
  7. rule — a law
  8. track — to keep track
  9. track — a song
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. ground — a position
  12. clip — a video
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. ball — a great time
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. ball — a dance
  17. track — a path
  18. rule — government

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