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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. face — to point toward
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. spell — letters
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. cold — an illness
  11. face — part of the head
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. rule — a law
  15. spell — a short time
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. cold — not warm
  18. fine — high quality
  19. spell — magic
  20. squash — to crush
  21. fine — all right
  22. face — to confront
  23. deal — to handle
  24. rule — government

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