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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. rule — government
  3. board — to get on
  4. rule — a law
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. ground — crushed
  8. spell — magic
  9. stock — shares
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. spell — letters
  13. spell — a short time
  14. degree — temperature
  15. ground — the earth
  16. stock — goods
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. ground — a position
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. degree — an amount
  22. degree — from a university
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. board — a committee

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