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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. club — a group
  3. tear — to rip
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. rule — government
  6. rule — a law
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. club — for dancing
  10. bat — the animal
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bass — low music
  13. tear — from crying
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. tear — from crying
  16. fine — all right
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. fine — high quality
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. bass — the fish
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. club — for golf
  24. date — the fruit

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