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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 116 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. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. rule — government
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. capital — a city
  5. face — to point toward
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. chip — to eat
  8. march — music
  9. capital — money
  10. face — part of the head
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. hand — in cards
  15. march — the month
  16. march — the month
  17. face — to confront
  18. rule — a law
  19. chip — for betting
  20. cell — a phone
  21. cell — in biology
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. hand — help

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