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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 120 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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. cold — not warm
  4. rule — a law
  5. court — of law
  6. mate — a partner
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. lean — thin
  9. mate — to breed
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. court — of a king
  12. lean — to bend
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. cold — an illness
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. press — newspapers
  19. kick — in football
  20. press — a publisher
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. court — for sport
  23. rule — government
  24. press — to push

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