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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. rule — government
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. bound — certain
  5. bound — tied together
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. bound — obliged
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. kid — to tease
  13. dip — to sink
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. plane — a tool
  16. rule — a law
  17. kid — child
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. sharp — clever
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. sharp — with an edge

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