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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: sharp · land · wake · kick · key · clip · squash · rule

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. squash — the sport
  4. kick — in football
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. clip — a video
  7. squash — to crush
  8. clip — for paper
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. land — a country
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. key — the most important part
  13. rule — a law
  14. key — for a lock
  15. land — to come down
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. land — ground
  18. key — in music
  19. clip — to cut
  20. sharp — clever
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. wake — a trail
  24. rule — to rule 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