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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 people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. last — to go on
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. rule — a law
  5. last — final
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. rule — government
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. kid — child
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. band — a music group
  15. bat — the animal
  16. kid — to tease
  17. band — a ring
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. last — finally
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. racket — for tennis

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