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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. rule — a law
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. bark — to shout
  7. bear — the animal
  8. wind — moving air
  9. file — a document
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. bear — the animal
  14. wind — moving air
  15. file — a tool
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. file — a line of people
  18. rule — government

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