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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. rule — a law
  3. pound — a weight
  4. rule — government
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. file — a line of people
  7. firm — steady
  8. file — a document
  9. file — a tool
  10. pitch — completely
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. firm — a company
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. wind — moving air
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. wind — moving air

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