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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
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: chest · ball · net · file · bay · capital · land · rule

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. file — a tool
  3. land — to come down
  4. chest — of your body
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. net — for catching
  8. file — a document
  9. net — in sport
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. capital — money
  13. chest — a box
  14. file — a line of people
  15. land — a country
  16. land — ground
  17. ball — a dance
  18. rule — a law
  19. chest — of your body
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. capital — a city
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. net — after costs
  24. ball — a great time

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