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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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. kid — child
  3. land — ground
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. spring — a coil
  7. spring — of water
  8. rule — government
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. rule — a law
  12. land — a country
  13. season — in sport
  14. season — of the year
  15. spring — the season
  16. kid — to tease
  17. ball — a dance
  18. pitch — completely
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. foot — a measure
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. ball — a great time
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. land — to come down

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