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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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. rule — a law
  7. land — to come down
  8. sharp — clever
  9. face — part of the head
  10. chest — of your body
  11. chest — of your body
  12. face — to confront
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. face — to point toward
  15. pitch — completely
  16. land — ground
  17. bear — the animal
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. rule — government
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. land — a country
  23. chest — a box
  24. bear — the animal

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