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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: charge · game · clip · snap · wind · toast · rule · fall

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. charge — electricity
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. charge — in control
  6. rule — a law
  7. toast — bread
  8. game — wild animals
  9. snap — to click
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. clip — to cut
  13. wind — moving air
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. clip — a video
  17. clip — for paper
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. fall — to drop
  20. charge — a price
  21. fall — the season
  22. wind — moving air
  23. fall — to drop
  24. game — a match

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