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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  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. rash — on the skin
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. land — ground
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. hand — in cards
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. rule — a law
  11. rash — hasty
  12. court — for sport
  13. court — of a king
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. land — a country
  17. court — of law
  18. hand — help
  19. stem — to come from
  20. land — to come down
  21. board — to get on
  22. board — a committee
  23. rash — a series
  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