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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: drill · lash · fan · clip · key · tear · pass · rule

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. key — the most important part
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. drill — a practice
  5. clip — a video
  6. key — in music
  7. rule — government
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. key — for a lock
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. clip — to cut
  12. tear — to rip
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. drill — the tool
  16. clip — for paper
  17. drill — army training
  18. rule — a law
  19. tear — from crying
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. pass — a permit
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. lash — to lash out

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