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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. prune — to trim
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. bound — certain
  5. wind — moving air
  6. rush — hurry
  7. wind — moving air
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. rule — government
  10. degree — from a university
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. degree — temperature
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. bound — obliged
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. rule — a law
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. roll — a list
  20. degree — an amount
  21. prune — to trim
  22. roll — a cake
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. prune — the fruit

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