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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. field — for sport
  3. bear — the animal
  4. rule — a law
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. cell — in biology
  7. capital — money
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. capital — a city
  10. last — to go on
  11. club — for dancing
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. cell — a phone
  15. last — finally
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. rule — government
  18. club — for golf
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. club — a group
  21. field — a subject
  22. field — farmland
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bear — to put up with

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