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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. fine — all right
  4. rule — government
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. net — after costs
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. spring — a coil
  11. rule — a law
  12. wound — an injury
  13. bass — low music
  14. spring — the season
  15. net — for catching
  16. net — in sport
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. spring — of water
  19. bass — the fish
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. wound — an injury
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. lie — to recline

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