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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. pit — a hole
  3. rule — government
  4. capital — money
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. fine — high quality
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. rule — a law
  12. mine — for digging
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. pit — in a race
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. fine — all right
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. chair — a leader
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. capital — a city
  24. rush — hurry

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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