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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 chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. capital — a city
  3. craft — boats
  4. land — a country
  5. land — to come down
  6. rule — a law
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. rule — government
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. file — a document
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. file — a line of people
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. track — a song
  17. track — to keep track
  18. wind — moving air
  19. land — ground
  20. craft — a skill
  21. capital — money
  22. wind — moving air
  23. file — a tool
  24. track — a path

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