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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. wound — an injury
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. cold — not warm
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. rule — government
  10. last — finally
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. press — to push
  13. last — final
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. cold — an illness
  16. last — to go on
  17. press — a publisher
  18. pit — in a race
  19. pit — a hole
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. press — newspapers
  22. branch — a division
  23. rule — a law
  24. chair — a leader

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