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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. tear — from crying
  3. rule — government
  4. rule — a law
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. key — the most important part
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. row — a line
  11. key — in music
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. pass — a permit
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. bulb — for light
  16. bat — the animal
  17. row — to paddle
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. tear — from crying
  23. bulb — for light
  24. tear — to rip

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