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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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. current — of water
  3. tear — from crying
  4. shower — rain
  5. rash — hasty
  6. prune — to trim
  7. prune — to trim
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. lean — to bend
  10. tear — to rip
  11. spring — the season
  12. rule — a law
  13. spring — a coil
  14. tear — from crying
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. lean — thin
  17. rule — government
  18. current — electric
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. rash — a series
  21. shower — to wash
  22. spring — of water
  23. current — happening now
  24. prune — the fruit

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