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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. net — for catching
  4. file — a document
  5. rash — a series
  6. rule — a law
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. cap — a lid
  9. pit — a hole
  10. rash — hasty
  11. net — in sport
  12. net — after costs
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. file — a line of people
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. cap — a hat
  17. spring — the season
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. spring — a coil
  20. cap — of ice
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. file — a tool
  23. spring — of water
  24. pit — in a race

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