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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 116 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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. rule — a law
  3. tear — from crying
  4. lean — to bend
  5. firm — decided
  6. rule — government
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. firm — a company
  9. ball — a dance
  10. tear — from crying
  11. capital — a city
  12. capital — money
  13. firm — steady
  14. lean — thin
  15. dip — to sink
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. tear — to rip
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. march — the month
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. march — the month
  23. march — music
  24. rule — to rule out

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