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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. staff — employees
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. bank — for money
  5. staff — employees
  6. tear — to rip
  7. land — to come down
  8. squash — to crush
  9. file — a line of people
  10. bank — of a river
  11. tear — from crying
  12. land — a country
  13. file — a document
  14. bass — the fish
  15. staff — a stick
  16. rule — government
  17. squash — the sport
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. bank — for money
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. file — a tool
  22. land — ground
  23. rule — a law
  24. bass — low music

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