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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. kid — child
  3. stem — to come from
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. file — a line of people
  7. swing — to play on
  8. file — a document
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. kid — to tease
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. swing — music
  13. rule — a law
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. file — a tool
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. mark — a grade
  18. season — of the year
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. swing — in golf
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. mark — a trace
  24. season — in sport

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