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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. game — wild animals
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. rule — government
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. field — a subject
  10. game — a match
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. field — farmland
  17. chair — a leader
  18. snap — to click
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. stand — to bear
  21. field — for sport
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. perch — the fish
  24. stand — for spectators

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