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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. mug — a face
  3. mug — a cup
  4. root — of a plant
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. rest — a break
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. root — of a word
  9. mug — to rob
  10. rest — what's left
  11. season — in sport
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. rest — what's left
  14. season — of the year
  15. rule — a law
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. mine — for digging
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. root — the cause
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. game — wild animals
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. game — a match

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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