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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: race · rule · stem · deal · roll · pound · chair · clip

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. pound — a weight
  5. roll — a cake
  6. clip — for paper
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. deal — to handle
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. race — the arms race
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. race — humankind
  13. stem — to come from
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. roll — a list
  17. clip — to cut
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. race — a contest
  20. clip — a video
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. chair — a leader
  23. rule — government
  24. rule — a law

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