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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. rush — hurry
  4. rule — government
  5. ball — a great time
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. rash — hasty
  9. bulb — for light
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. game — wild animals
  16. race — humankind
  17. rash — a series
  18. rule — a law
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. game — a match
  21. race — a contest
  22. ball — a dance
  23. race — the arms race
  24. wake — a trail

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