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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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. cap — a hat
  5. kid — to tease
  6. cap — a lid
  7. wind — moving air
  8. rule — a law
  9. cap — of ice
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. court — for sport
  12. court — of law
  13. net — after costs
  14. wind — moving air
  15. kid — child
  16. net — for catching
  17. rule — government
  18. pass — a permit
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. net — in sport
  22. court — of a king
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. wind — to turn a key

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