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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'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. rule — a law
  3. race — the arms race
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. land — to come down
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. tube — a container
  11. race — a contest
  12. band — a music group
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. rule — government
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. tube — the underground
  19. race — humankind
  20. deal — to handle
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. band — a ring
  23. chair — a leader
  24. land — a country

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