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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 116 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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. capital — a city
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. season — of the year
  5. chip — to eat
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. rule — government
  9. season — in sport
  10. capital — money
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. chip — for betting
  13. spell — letters
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. chair — a leader
  17. bore — to drill
  18. spell — magic
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. bore — to tire
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. spell — a short time
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. rule — to rule out

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