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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. land — a country
  3. last — final
  4. land — to come down
  5. rock — a stone
  6. last — to go on
  7. race — humankind
  8. spring — a coil
  9. rock — music
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. last — finally
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. land — ground
  14. rule — a law
  15. spring — the season
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. race — the arms race
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. race — a contest
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. spring — of water
  24. rock — to move gently

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