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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. tear — from crying
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. cap — of ice
  6. wind — moving air
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. cap — a lid
  9. object — to protest
  10. object — an aim
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. row — a line
  13. rule — government
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. tear — to rip
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. cap — a hat
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. tear — from crying
  20. object — a thing
  21. wind — moving air
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. row — to paddle

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