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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. field — a subject
  3. squash — to crush
  4. tear — to rip
  5. field — farmland
  6. spell — letters
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. ground — crushed
  9. spell — magic
  10. current — electric
  11. current — of water
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. current — happening now
  15. rule — government
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. ground — the earth
  18. ground — a position
  19. squash — the sport
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. tear — from crying
  22. tear — from crying
  23. field — for sport
  24. rule — a law

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