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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. net — in sport
  3. capital — a city
  4. net — after costs
  5. cue — a signal
  6. cue — for pool
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. spell — magic
  9. net — for catching
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. spell — letters
  12. capital — money
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. rule — government
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. cue — a hint
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. spell — a short time

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