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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. last — final
  3. rule — government
  4. last — finally
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. mate — a partner
  9. mate — to breed
  10. rule — a law
  11. kid — to tease
  12. spring — of water
  13. staff — employees
  14. present — the time now
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. spring — a coil
  17. mate — a friend
  18. present — a gift
  19. kid — child
  20. present — there
  21. last — to go on
  22. staff — a stick
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. staff — employees

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