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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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. wake — a trail
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. cell — a phone
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. wound — an injury
  7. file — a tool
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. tube — the underground
  10. cell — in biology
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. tube — a container
  16. file — a line of people
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. rule — a law
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. file — a document
  23. rule — government
  24. ruler — for measuring

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