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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. craft — a skill
  3. scale — in music
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. rule — a law
  7. bass — the fish
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. saw — the tool
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. scale — size or range
  15. bass — low music
  16. craft — boats
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. cold — not warm
  19. cold — an illness
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. saw — the tool
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. bowl — to roll

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