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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 train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bear — the animal
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. bear — the animal
  7. cold — an illness
  8. tear — to rip
  9. degree — from a university
  10. chip — to eat
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. tear — from crying
  13. degree — temperature
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. degree — an amount
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. cold — not warm
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. rule — government
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. chip — for betting
  24. kick — in football

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