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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. tube — the underground
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. last — finally
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. rule — government
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. rule — a law
  9. tear — from crying
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. last — final
  16. spell — a short time
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. tear — to rip
  19. spell — magic
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. tear — from crying
  22. spell — letters
  23. snap — to click
  24. tube — a container

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