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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. rule — a law
  4. tear — to rip
  5. cap — of ice
  6. rule — government
  7. cap — a hat
  8. file — a line of people
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. file — a tool
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. squash — to crush
  13. tear — from crying
  14. cap — a lid
  15. bear — the animal
  16. file — a document
  17. mate — to breed
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. mate — a friend
  20. mate — a partner
  21. tear — from crying
  22. bear — the animal
  23. squash — the sport
  24. rush — hurry

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