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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. spring — of water
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. bore — to drill
  8. chip — for betting
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. bore — to tire
  11. fork — in a road
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. spring — the season
  19. spring — a coil
  20. chip — to eat
  21. snap — to click
  22. rule — a law
  23. wake — a trail
  24. fork — to eat with

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