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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. rule — a law
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. fall — the season
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. capital — a city
  9. cell — in biology
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. tube — the underground
  12. rock — a stone
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. rock — music
  17. tube — a container
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. capital — money
  20. fall — to drop
  21. fall — to drop
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. cell — a phone
  24. kick — in football

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