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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 120 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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. chest — of your body
  3. bound — certain
  4. bound — tied together
  5. chest — a box
  6. last — finally
  7. cue — a signal
  8. land — to come down
  9. last — to go on
  10. cue — a hint
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. cue — for pool
  13. last — final
  14. chest — of your body
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. rule — government
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. content — happy
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. land — ground
  22. bound — obliged
  23. content — the amount
  24. rule — a law

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