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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 124 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 is in your ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. last — finally
  3. rule — a law
  4. swing — in golf
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. mate — to breed
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. cap — a hat
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. kick — in football
  12. mate — a partner
  13. last — final
  14. cap — of ice
  15. court — of a king
  16. swing — to play on
  17. mate — a friend
  18. court — of law
  19. cap — a lid
  20. plane — a tool
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. last — to go on
  23. rule — government
  24. swing — 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