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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. sharp — clever
  3. fine — all right
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. drill — army training
  11. fine — high quality
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. drill — a practice
  14. cell — in biology
  15. capital — money
  16. capital — a city
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. drill — the tool
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. cell — a phone
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. rule — government
  24. leaves — of a tree

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