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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 120 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: calf · cell · rest · arm · clip · club · rule · object

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  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 — government
  2. object — to protest
  3. clip — for paper
  4. cell — in biology
  5. rest — what's left
  6. clip — a video
  7. object — an aim
  8. rest — a break
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. cell — a phone
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. object — a thing
  13. club — a group
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. club — for dancing
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. clip — to cut
  20. rest — what's left
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. club — for golf
  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