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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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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: clip · ball · leaves · row · pound · rule · current · mate

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. rule — government
  3. clip — for paper
  4. rule — a law
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. current — happening now
  9. current — electric
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. clip — a video
  12. row — a line
  13. mate — to breed
  14. clip — to cut
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. current — of water
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. pound — a weight
  20. row — to paddle
  21. mate — a friend
  22. ball — a great time
  23. mate — a partner
  24. ball — a dance

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