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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 116 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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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. pitch — a sales talk
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. swing — to play on
  6. capital — money
  7. tear — from crying
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. cell — in biology
  10. mug — a cup
  11. swing — music
  12. mug — a face
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. rule — government
  16. mug — to rob
  17. tear — to rip
  18. capital — a city
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. cell — a phone
  21. pitch — completely
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. swing — in golf
  24. cell — in a prison

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