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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 hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. bulb — for light
  5. stem — to come from
  6. wake — a trail
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. mine — for digging
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. bulb — for light
  11. hand — in cards
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. land — to come down
  14. chest — of your body
  15. land — a country
  16. land — ground
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. chest — a box
  20. chest — of your body
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. rule — a law
  23. hand — help
  24. stem — a stem cell

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