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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. pit — in a race
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. rule — government
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. rash — hasty
  9. rash — a series
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. capital — money
  15. capital — a city
  16. rule — a law
  17. pit — a hole
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. land — to come down
  20. land — a country
  21. land — ground
  22. mine — for digging
  23. scale — size or range
  24. scale — in music

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