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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. land — a country
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. club — for golf
  5. staff — a stick
  6. file — a line of people
  7. club — for dancing
  8. bore — to drill
  9. court — of a king
  10. club — a group
  11. bore — to tire
  12. staff — employees
  13. land — ground
  14. land — to come down
  15. bulb — for light
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. bulb — for light
  18. rule — government
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. file — a document
  21. rule — a law
  22. file — a tool
  23. court — of law
  24. staff — employees

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