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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. rule — a law
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. prune — to trim
  8. rule — government
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. tear — from crying
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. band — a ring
  13. wake — a trail
  14. race — humankind
  15. prune — to trim
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. race — a contest
  20. race — the arms race
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. band — a music group
  23. tear — from crying
  24. snap — to click

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