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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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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. rule — government
  3. fall — the season
  4. fall — to drop
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — from crying
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. tear — to rip
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. cell — in biology
  11. field — for sport
  12. cell — a phone
  13. rule — a law
  14. fall — to drop
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. rush — hurry
  18. field — farmland

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