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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. file — a document
  3. row — a line
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. row — to paddle
  7. rule — a law
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. land — a country
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. file — a tool
  12. rule — government
  13. club — a group
  14. club — for golf
  15. last — final
  16. file — a line of people
  17. last — to go on
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. land — ground
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. land — to come down
  23. club — for dancing
  24. leaves — to go away

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