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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. land — a country
  4. tube — a container
  5. land — to come down
  6. rule — government
  7. tear — from crying
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rest — what's left
  11. land — ground
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. date — the fruit
  15. rest — a break
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. tube — the underground
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. rule — a law
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. deal — to handle
  22. tear — to rip
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. date — on the calendar

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