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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. capital — a city
  3. land — ground
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. press — a publisher
  7. wake — a trail
  8. rule — a law
  9. game — a match
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. press — newspapers
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. staff — employees
  14. rule — government
  15. bark — to shout
  16. land — a country
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. land — to come down
  19. game — wild animals
  20. press — to push
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. capital — money
  23. staff — a stick
  24. game — a kind of play

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