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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 people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. scale — in music
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. rule — a law
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. rule — government
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. wake — a trail
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. bat — the animal
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. wound — an injury
  19. wound — an injury
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. scale — size or range
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. rule — to rule out

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