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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 120 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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wound · chair · rule · calf · field · bowl

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. wound — an injury
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. chair — a leader
  7. field — for sport
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. rule — a law
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. field — farmland
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. wound — an injury
  16. field — a subject
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. calf — a young animal

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