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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. rash — hasty
  3. last — final
  4. wind — moving air
  5. rule — government
  6. fine — all right
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. last — finally
  9. suit — clothes
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. snap — to click
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. cold — an illness
  14. rash — a series
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. fine — high quality
  18. suit — in cards
  19. last — to go on
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. rule — a law
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. cold — not warm
  24. suit — to fit

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