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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. field — for sport
  4. rule — government
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. file — a line of people
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. perch — the fish
  10. land — to come down
  11. file — a tool
  12. land — a country
  13. land — ground
  14. press — a publisher
  15. scale — size or range
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. scale — in music
  18. press — newspapers
  19. field — farmland
  20. bulb — for light
  21. field — a subject
  22. file — a document
  23. press — to push
  24. bulb — for light

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