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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: bat · clip · rule · straw · bowl · mate · deal · swing

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. clip — a video
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. deal — to handle
  7. swing — in golf
  8. clip — to cut
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. clip — for paper
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. mate — a partner
  15. mate — to breed
  16. bat — the animal
  17. swing — music
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. rule — government
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. mate — a friend
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. swing — to play on
  24. bowl — to roll

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