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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. season — in sport
  3. mark — a grade
  4. rule — a law
  5. suit — clothes
  6. kid — child
  7. land — a country
  8. bank — for money
  9. kid — to tease
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. season — of the year
  12. suit — in cards
  13. land — to come down
  14. clip — to cut
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. bank — for money
  17. bank — of a river
  18. suit — to fit
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. mark — a trace
  21. clip — a video
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. clip — for paper
  24. land — ground

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