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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. rule — a law
  4. rule — government
  5. last — finally
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. last — final
  10. last — to go on
  11. pop — music
  12. cell — in biology
  13. pop — to visit
  14. mine — for digging
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. pop — soda
  21. vault — a safe
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. cell — a phone
  24. mine — belonging to me

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