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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. spell — magic
  3. band — a ring
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. spring — of water
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. race — a contest
  9. band — a music group
  10. spell — letters
  11. spell — a short time
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. race — the arms race
  15. degree — from a university
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. spring — a coil
  18. race — humankind
  19. degree — temperature
  20. rule — a law
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. degree — an amount
  24. spring — the season

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