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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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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. current — electric
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. land — ground
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. band — a music group
  7. present — the time now
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. cue — a hint
  10. cue — for pool
  11. sharp — clever
  12. ground — a position
  13. ground — the earth
  14. present — a gift
  15. cue — a signal
  16. current — of water
  17. land — to come down
  18. rule — a law
  19. band — a ring
  20. current — happening now
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. present — there
  23. land — a country
  24. ground — crushed

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