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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 120 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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. field — for sport
  3. capital — a city
  4. firm — a company
  5. wind — moving air
  6. field — a subject
  7. wind — moving air
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. file — a line of people
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. file — a tool
  12. capital — money
  13. lie — to recline
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. field — farmland
  16. rule — government
  17. firm — decided
  18. club — for dancing
  19. club — for golf
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. file — a document
  22. firm — steady
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. club — a group

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