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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. rule — a law
  3. land — ground
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. bound — tied together
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. ball — a dance
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. wind — moving air
  10. bound — certain
  11. pitch — completely
  12. land — to come down
  13. rule — government
  14. wound — an injury
  15. ball — a great time
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. land — a country
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wound — an injury
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. bound — obliged
  24. rule — to rule out

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