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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: rule · key · pound · land · straw · prune · clip · saw

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. land — to come down
  4. pound — a weight
  5. land — a country
  6. saw — the tool
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. key — in music
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. saw — the tool
  12. prune — to trim
  13. key — for a lock
  14. land — ground
  15. clip — a video
  16. clip — to cut
  17. prune — to trim
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. rule — government
  20. rule — a law
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. 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