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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. bound — tied together
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. band — a music group
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. cap — of ice
  7. bound — obliged
  8. current — happening now
  9. file — a tool
  10. band — a ring
  11. file — a line of people
  12. bound — certain
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. chair — a leader
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. tear — from crying
  17. cap — a hat
  18. tear — from crying
  19. current — electric
  20. cap — a lid
  21. file — a document
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. current — of water

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