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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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. rule — government
  5. spring — a coil
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. mark — a grade
  8. spring — of water
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. pit — in a race
  13. mark — a trace
  14. net — after costs
  15. spring — the season
  16. net — for catching
  17. ball — a dance
  18. ball — a great time
  19. pit — a hole
  20. plane — a tool
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. rule — a law
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. plane — in geometry

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