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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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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: rock · bound · rule · land · face · mine · arm · sharp

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. sharp — clever
  3. land — to come down
  4. rock — a stone
  5. face — part of the head
  6. rock — music
  7. face — to point toward
  8. rule — government
  9. bound — tied together
  10. land — a country
  11. land — ground
  12. bound — obliged
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. face — to confront
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. mine — for digging
  22. rule — a law
  23. bound — certain
  24. sharp — with an edge

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