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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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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: pit · spell · clip · can · rule · lean · shower · track

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. can — to be able to
  4. rule — a law
  5. track — a song
  6. pit — in a race
  7. spell — magic
  8. spell — letters
  9. spell — a short time
  10. can — a tin
  11. shower — rain
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. clip — to cut
  14. track — a path
  15. rule — government
  16. clip — a video
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. pit — a hole
  19. lean — thin
  20. shower — to wash
  21. track — to keep track
  22. can — a tin
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. lean — to bend

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