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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. rest — what's left
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. rest — a break
  5. land — a country
  6. rule — government
  7. file — a line of people
  8. kid — child
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. fall — the season
  14. bass — low music
  15. fall — to drop
  16. land — to come down
  17. fall — to drop
  18. rule — a law
  19. bass — the fish
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. file — a tool
  22. rest — what's left
  23. file — a document
  24. kid — to tease

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