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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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. rule — government
  3. tube — a container
  4. court — of law
  5. tube — the underground
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. chair — a leader
  8. club — for golf
  9. court — of a king
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. court — for sport
  12. rule — a law
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. clip — for paper
  17. ball — a great time
  18. clip — a video
  19. clip — to cut
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. club — a group
  22. club — for dancing
  23. ball — a dance
  24. deal — a big deal

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