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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 124 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: rule · court · present · lie · hand · deal · scale · cell

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. rule — a law
  3. court — for sport
  4. present — there
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. scale — size or range
  7. rule — government
  8. court — of a king
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. cell — in biology
  11. cell — a phone
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. hand — help
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. present — the time now
  17. deal — to handle
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. present — a gift
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. hand — in cards
  22. lie — to recline
  23. court — of law
  24. scale — in music

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