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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. rule — a law
  3. pit — a hole
  4. perch — the fish
  5. rash — hasty
  6. ground — a position
  7. pit — in a race
  8. ground — crushed
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. ground — the earth
  11. suit — clothes
  12. rash — a series
  13. suit — in cards
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. cold — an illness
  18. suit — to fit
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. cold — not warm
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. cold — the Cold War

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