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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: rule · rash · wound · mine · coach · field · date · leaves

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. field — a subject
  5. date — the fruit
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. wound — an injury
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. rash — a series
  10. mine — for digging
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. field — farmland
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. rash — hasty
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. rule — a law
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. field — for sport
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. wound — an injury

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