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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. date — the fruit
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. race — humankind
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. face — to confront
  9. rule — government
  10. rash — hasty
  11. tube — the underground
  12. rash — a series
  13. rule — a law
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. race — a contest
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. race — the arms race
  20. tube — a container
  21. face — to point toward
  22. face — part of the head
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. rash — on the skin

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