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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 116 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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. drill — the tool
  4. saw — the tool
  5. drill — army training
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. mine — for digging
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. hand — in cards
  10. hand — help
  11. drill — a practice
  12. saw — the tool
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. season — of the year
  17. season — in sport
  18. rule — a law

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