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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. pit — in a race
  3. mine — for digging
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. cold — an illness
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. chair — a leader
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. cold — not warm
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. wax — to grow
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. pit — a hole
  19. rule — a law
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. calf — of the leg

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