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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. lie — to recline
  4. field — a subject
  5. land — a country
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. field — farmland
  8. ground — the earth
  9. rule — government
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. ground — a position
  12. field — for sport
  13. ground — crushed
  14. kid — to tease
  15. land — ground
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. kid — child
  18. land — to come down

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