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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 116 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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. 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 — a law
  2. file — a line of people
  3. season — of the year
  4. last — to go on
  5. track — to keep track
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. mug — a cup
  8. bank — for money
  9. season — in sport
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. rush — hurry
  12. last — finally
  13. bank — of a river
  14. file — a document
  15. mug — a face
  16. bank — for money
  17. file — a tool
  18. track — a path
  19. track — a song
  20. mug — to rob
  21. last — final
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. 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