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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. rule — a law
  3. spring — of water
  4. land — a country
  5. land — to come down
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. field — for sport
  8. hand — in cards
  9. spring — the season
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. spring — a coil
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. field — a subject
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. stand — to bear
  16. land — ground
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. hand — help
  19. rule — government
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. field — farmland
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. bulb — for light
  24. hand — part of the body

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