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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 water is too ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. cold — not warm
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. cold — an illness
  6. rule — a law
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. mate — a partner
  9. fork — in a road
  10. mate — to breed
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. ball — a great time
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. ball — a dance
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. mate — a friend
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. pitch — completely
  24. ball — a round shape

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