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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. cell — a phone
  3. mate — to breed
  4. rule — government
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. mate — a friend
  9. race — a contest
  10. mate — a partner
  11. rule — a law
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. can — a tin
  14. race — the arms race
  15. hand — in cards
  16. can — a tin
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. mine — for digging
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. race — humankind
  21. can — to be able to
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. cell — in biology

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