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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. rule — government
  3. stock — shares
  4. drill — a practice
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. stock — goods
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. squash — the sport
  10. track — to keep track
  11. rule — a law
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. shower — to wash
  16. capital — a city
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. track — a song
  19. track — a path
  20. shower — rain
  21. squash — to crush
  22. drill — the tool
  23. drill — army training
  24. patient — a sick person

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