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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. last — final
  3. face — to confront
  4. last — to go on
  5. press — to push
  6. suit — in cards
  7. suit — to fit
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. rule — a law
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. stand — to bear
  14. wake — a trail
  15. press — a publisher
  16. press — newspapers
  17. last — finally
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. face — part of the head
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. suit — clothes
  23. face — to point toward
  24. kick — in football

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