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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. key — the most important part
  4. race — humankind
  5. bulb — for light
  6. key — for a lock
  7. capital — a city
  8. key — in music
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. race — a contest
  11. rule — a law
  12. bulb — for light
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. pass — a permit
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. capital — money
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. face — to point toward
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. face — to confront
  23. face — part of the head
  24. race — the arms race

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