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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. last — final
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. season — of the year
  9. squash — the sport
  10. rule — a law
  11. last — to go on
  12. season — in sport
  13. squash — to crush
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. bark — to shout
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. pass — a permit
  22. last — finally
  23. perch — the fish
  24. vault — a safe

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