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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. chair — a leader
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. degree — from a university
  7. rash — a series
  8. rash — hasty
  9. rule — a law
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. degree — temperature
  12. march — music
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. march — the month
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. file — a line of people
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. degree — an amount
  22. march — the month
  23. file — a document
  24. rule — government

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