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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 120 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: snap · spring · bear · bore · clip · saw · rule · cell

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. saw — the tool
  4. cell — in biology
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. saw — the tool
  7. clip — a video
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bore — to tire
  10. spring — of water
  11. rule — government
  12. cell — a phone
  13. snap — to click
  14. spring — the season
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. clip — for paper
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. spring — a coil
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bore — to drill
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. clip — to cut
  24. bore — gave birth

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