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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. rule — a law
  3. mine — for digging
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. fine — all right
  6. bass — the fish
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. bass — low music
  9. staff — employees
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. snap — to click
  12. land — ground
  13. last — to go on
  14. rule — government
  15. fine — high quality
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. last — finally
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. last — final
  21. staff — employees
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. land — a country
  24. land — to come down

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