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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 124 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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. rule — government
  3. cap — of ice
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. rule — a law
  7. cell — a phone
  8. cue — a signal
  9. cap — a lid
  10. capital — money
  11. last — to go on
  12. last — finally
  13. capital — a city
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. cell — in biology
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. last — final
  18. season — of the year
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. season — in sport
  22. cue — a hint
  23. cap — a hat
  24. cue — for pool

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