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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 120 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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. season — in sport
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. present — a gift
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. current — of water
  9. pitch — completely
  10. last — finally
  11. last — final
  12. last — to go on
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. present — the time now
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. rash — a series
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. rash — hasty
  19. present — there
  20. rule — a law
  21. current — electric
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. rule — government
  24. current — happening now

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