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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 116 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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. rule — a law
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. cap — of ice
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. cell — a phone
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. cell — in biology
  16. rule — government
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. cap — a hat
  19. cap — a lid
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. ball — a great time
  22. mine — for digging
  23. ball — a dance
  24. mouse — for a computer

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