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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. squash — to crush
  3. mate — a partner
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. mate — a friend
  6. rule — a law
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. rush — hurry
  10. mate — to breed
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. field — for sport
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. field — farmland
  15. squash — the sport
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. field — a subject
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. pop — to visit
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. pop — soda
  24. pop — music

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