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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. land — to come down
  3. rule — government
  4. scale — size or range
  5. fork — in a road
  6. land — a country
  7. firm — a company
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. land — ground
  10. pop — soda
  11. fall — to drop
  12. fall — the season
  13. firm — steady
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. pop — music
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. pop — to visit
  19. rule — a law
  20. fall — to drop
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. scale — in music
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. firm — decided

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