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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. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. land — a country
  4. roll — a cake
  5. rule — government
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. cold — not warm
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. cold — an illness
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. degree — an amount
  13. dip — to sink
  14. land — to come down
  15. degree — from a university
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. roll — a list
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. rule — a law
  20. degree — temperature
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. land — ground

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