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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 116 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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Word bank
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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. season — in sport
  3. wound — an injury
  4. cell — in biology
  5. press — a publisher
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. snap — to click
  8. cell — a phone
  9. present — the time now
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. press — to push
  12. wound — an injury
  13. present — there
  14. press — newspapers
  15. rule — a law
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. present — a gift
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. season — of the year
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. season — to add flavour

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