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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. spring — a coil
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. rule — government
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. lie — to recline
  11. spring — the season
  12. degree — temperature
  13. stock — shares
  14. board — a committee
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. cell — in biology
  17. cell — a phone
  18. board — to get on
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. degree — an amount
  21. stock — goods
  22. spring — of water
  23. degree — from a university
  24. rule — a law

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