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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. rule — government
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. rule — a law
  6. cell — in biology
  7. capital — a city
  8. staff — employees
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. fall — to drop
  11. fall — the season
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. net — for catching
  14. staff — employees
  15. staff — a stick
  16. cell — a phone
  17. net — in sport
  18. capital — money
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. fall — to drop
  22. net — after costs
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. straw — dry grass

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