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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. cell — in biology
  3. land — to come down
  4. race — the arms race
  5. press — a publisher
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. cell — a phone
  9. race — humankind
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. press — newspapers
  13. press — to push
  14. perch — the fish
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. rule — government
  17. land — ground
  18. rule — a law
  19. mine — for digging
  20. land — a country
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. race — a contest
  23. pass — a permit
  24. perch — for a bird

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