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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. spring — of water
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. rash — a series
  5. pass — a permit
  6. root — of a plant
  7. root — of a word
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. land — ground
  10. land — to come down
  11. rule — a law
  12. rule — government
  13. spring — a coil
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. land — a country
  18. wound — an injury
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. rash — hasty
  22. rush — hurry
  23. wound — an injury
  24. root — the cause

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