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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. ground — the earth
  7. roll — a cake
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. foot — a measure
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. ground — crushed
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. shower — to wash
  16. rule — a law
  17. shower — rain
  18. roll — a list
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. ground — a position

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