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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. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. land — a country
  4. shower — to wash
  5. rule — government
  6. staff — employees
  7. cold — an illness
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. pit — a hole
  10. rule — a law
  11. staff — employees
  12. fine — high quality
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. land — to come down
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. perch — the fish
  17. land — ground
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. staff — a stick
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. shower — rain
  22. fine — all right
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. cold — not warm

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