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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. chest — a box
  3. scale — in music
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. chest — of your body
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. scale — size or range
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. spell — magic
  12. spell — letters
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. spell — a short time
  15. foot — a measure
  16. bat — the animal
  17. rule — a law
  18. chest — of your body

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