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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 120 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 don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. sharp — clever
  3. rock — music
  4. rule — government
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. fall — to drop
  7. file — a tool
  8. rule — a law
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. file — a document
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. fall — the season
  13. file — a line of people
  14. shower — rain
  15. root — the cause
  16. root — of a word
  17. rock — a stone
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. fall — to drop
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. shower — to wash
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. root — of a plant

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