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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. race — the arms race
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. content — the amount
  5. last — final
  6. hand — in cards
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. last — finally
  9. rule — a law
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. race — a contest
  12. race — humankind
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. content — happy
  15. shower — to wash
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. hand — help
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. last — to go on
  21. shower — rain
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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