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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. face — to confront
  5. cold — not warm
  6. fork — in a road
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. kick — in football
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. mark — a trace
  16. rule — government
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. cold — an illness
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. mark — a grade
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. face — to point toward
  24. face — part of the head

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