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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  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. land — to come down
  2. ground — crushed
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. march — the month
  5. rule — government
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. rule — a law
  8. land — a country
  9. ground — a position
  10. march — music
  11. chair — a leader
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. rest — a break
  14. rest — what's left
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. march — the month
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. rest — what's left
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. ground — the earth
  21. land — ground
  22. dip — to sink
  23. cabinet — ministers
  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