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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. rule — a law
  3. court — of law
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. rash — hasty
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. stock — shares
  10. board — to get on
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. court — for sport
  13. deal — to handle
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. stock — goods
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. rash — a series
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. rule — government
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. board — a committee
  24. court — of a king

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