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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: kid · snap · bound · clip · board · rule · pop · mug

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. pop — to visit
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. board — to get on
  5. clip — a video
  6. clip — for paper
  7. pop — music
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. bound — obliged
  12. mug — a cup
  13. mug — a face
  14. pop — soda
  15. rule — a law
  16. kid — to tease
  17. rule — government
  18. bound — certain
  19. bound — tied together
  20. kid — child
  21. mug — to rob
  22. clip — to cut
  23. snap — to click
  24. board — a flat piece

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