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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 124 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 kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. mate — a friend
  4. scale — in music
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. wind — moving air
  7. current — of water
  8. mate — a partner
  9. scale — size or range
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. capital — money
  13. current — happening now
  14. mate — to breed
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. capital — a city
  17. bank — for money
  18. bank — for money
  19. bank — of a river
  20. wind — moving air
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. current — electric
  23. bat — the animal
  24. rule — a law

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