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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. capital — money
  3. rule — government
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. mate — to breed
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. fork — in a road
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. mate — a partner
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. court — for sport
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. court — of law
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. rule — a law
  20. date — the fruit
  21. court — of a king
  22. capital — a city
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. date — on the calendar

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