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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
468
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 · capital · ruler · rule · pitcher · date · rash · game

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. clip — a video
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. clip — to cut
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. capital — money
  7. rash — hasty
  8. capital — a city
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. clip — for paper
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. date — the fruit
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. rash — a series
  18. rule — government
  19. game — a match
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. game — wild animals
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. pitcher — a jug

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