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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 116 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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. cold — an illness
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. swing — in golf
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. fall — to drop
  9. ground — crushed
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. rule — government
  12. fall — to drop
  13. cold — not warm
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. swing — to play on
  16. fall — the season
  17. swing — music
  18. rule — a law
  19. ground — the earth
  20. fine — high quality
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. ground — a position
  24. nail — for a hammer

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