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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. lie — to recline
  3. spring — a coil
  4. mine — for digging
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. dip — to sink
  8. spring — the season
  9. game — a match
  10. last — finally
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. rule — a law
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. last — final
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. last — to go on
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. spring — of water
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. rule — government

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