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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. field — a subject
  7. game — wild animals
  8. cold — not warm
  9. wake — a trail
  10. current — electric
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. field — for sport
  13. rule — government
  14. cold — an illness
  15. stand — to bear
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. current — happening now
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. game — a match
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. field — farmland
  23. current — of water
  24. rule — a law

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