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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. spell — a short time
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. court — for sport
  5. spell — magic
  6. court — of a king
  7. rash — hasty
  8. rule — a law
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. season — of the year
  12. rash — a series
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. deal — to handle
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wound — an injury
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. bank — for money
  20. spell — letters
  21. bank — for money
  22. court — of law
  23. bank — of a river
  24. season — in sport

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