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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. last — to go on
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. last — final
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. sharp — clever
  12. ground — the earth
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. rule — a law
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. bark — to shout
  17. saw — the tool
  18. snap — to click
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. last — finally
  21. ground — a position
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. ground — crushed
  24. saw — the tool

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