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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. rule — government
  3. spell — letters
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. plane — a tool
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. net — after costs
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. net — in sport
  12. cell — in biology
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. net — for catching
  16. rule — a law
  17. capital — money
  18. spell — a short time
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. cell — a phone
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. spell — magic
  23. capital — a city
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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