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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. net — after costs
  3. rule — government
  4. spell — a short time
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. bear — the animal
  7. net — in sport
  8. spell — magic
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. capital — money
  12. spring — of water
  13. spring — a coil
  14. game — a match
  15. net — for catching
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. capital — a city
  18. bear — the animal
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. game — wild animals
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. spring — the season
  23. rule — a law
  24. calf — a young animal

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