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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. ground — the earth
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. rule — government
  5. court — of law
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. march — music
  8. ground — a position
  9. land — a country
  10. wake — a trail
  11. court — for sport
  12. rush — hurry
  13. march — the month
  14. rule — a law
  15. land — ground
  16. court — of a king
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. ground — crushed
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. land — to come down
  22. season — of the year
  23. season — in sport
  24. march — the month

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