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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 120 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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. lie — to recline
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. rule — government
  6. last — final
  7. last — to go on
  8. rule — a law
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. fork — in a road
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. rash — hasty
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. rash — a series
  16. cold — not warm
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. cold — an illness

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