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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. land — a country
  3. game — wild animals
  4. race — the arms race
  5. game — a match
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. cap — a hat
  8. cap — of ice
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. wind — moving air
  12. land — to come down
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. rule — a law
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. wind — moving air
  18. rule — government
  19. land — ground
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. race — a contest
  22. cap — a lid
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. race — humankind

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