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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. staff — employees
  3. cold — not warm
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. staff — employees
  6. object — to protest
  7. mug — a cup
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. prune — to trim
  10. game — a match
  11. object — an aim
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. cold — an illness
  15. object — a thing
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. rule — government
  18. staff — a stick
  19. rule — a law
  20. prune — to trim
  21. mug — a face
  22. mug — to rob
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. lie — to recline

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