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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. capital — money
  4. bulb — for light
  5. ground — the earth
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. net — for catching
  8. mine — for digging
  9. net — in sport
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. capital — a city
  15. ground — crushed
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. ground — a position
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. bulb — for light
  22. rule — a law
  23. net — after costs
  24. straw — a straw man

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