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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: present · dip · capital · leaves · bat · rule · lash · kid

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. dip — to sink
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. kid — to tease
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. present — the time now
  9. capital — money
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. bat — the animal
  15. capital — a city
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. present — there
  19. present — a gift
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. rule — a law
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. kid — child
  24. leaves — of a tree

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