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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 124 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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. rock — a stone
  5. rock — music
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. bat — the animal
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. rule — a law
  14. capital — money
  15. wind — moving air
  16. game — wild animals
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. wind — moving air
  22. capital — a city
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. game — a match

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