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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. ball — a great time
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. wound — an injury
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. chair — a leader
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. rule — a law
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. wax — to grow
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. race — the arms race
  20. ball — a dance
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. race — humankind
  24. race — a contest

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