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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. shower — rain
  4. bound — certain
  5. rule — government
  6. rule — a law
  7. bound — tied together
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. prune — to trim
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. lean — to bend
  13. bound — obliged
  14. shower — to wash
  15. wind — moving air
  16. game — a match
  17. prune — to trim
  18. plane — a tool
  19. wind — moving air
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. game — wild animals
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. lean — thin
  24. plane — an aircraft

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