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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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: plane · mine · bass · cold · bear · rule

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. rule — government
  4. cold — not warm
  5. rule — a law
  6. bass — the fish
  7. bear — the animal
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. bass — low music
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. mine — for digging
  17. plane — a tool
  18. bear — to put up with

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