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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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. roll — a list
  4. mug — a face
  5. file — a tool
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. roll — a cake
  8. row — a line
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. file — a line of people
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. mug — a cup
  16. row — to paddle
  17. pitch — completely
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. file — a document
  20. bark — to shout
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. stem — to come from
  23. rule — government
  24. mug — to rob

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