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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. present — there
  3. present — the time now
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. net — in sport
  8. chest — a box
  9. capital — money
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. net — after costs
  12. present — a gift
  13. capital — a city
  14. rash — a series
  15. chest — of your body
  16. chest — of your body
  17. mark — a grade
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. rule — a law
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. mark — a trace
  23. rash — hasty
  24. net — for catching

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