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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. land — ground
  3. rule — government
  4. rule — a law
  5. land — a country
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. spell — letters
  8. spell — magic
  9. pop — to visit
  10. saw — the tool
  11. spring — a coil
  12. pop — music
  13. spring — the season
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. spring — of water
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. spell — a short time
  19. pop — soda
  20. plane — a tool
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. saw — the tool
  24. pass — a permit

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