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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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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: clip · stand · rule · chip · court · bank · bat · ruler

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. court — of law
  4. bank — of a river
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. clip — a video
  7. clip — to cut
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. chip — for betting
  11. rule — government
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. bank — for money
  14. bat — the animal
  15. clip — for paper
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. court — of a king
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. court — for sport
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. stand — to bear
  22. chip — to eat
  23. rule — a law
  24. bank — for money

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