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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. bound — obliged
  3. wax — to grow
  4. file — a tool
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. pop — music
  7. bound — tied together
  8. bound — certain
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. season — of the year
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. pop — soda
  13. rule — government
  14. rule — a law
  15. tear — from crying
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. pop — to visit
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. file — a document
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. tear — to rip
  23. season — in sport
  24. tear — from crying

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