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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. cell — in biology
  5. cell — a phone
  6. wound — an injury
  7. cue — a hint
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. wax — to grow
  16. cue — for pool
  17. cue — a signal
  18. wound — an injury
  19. tear — to rip
  20. rule — a law
  21. tear — from crying
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. kick — in football
  24. rule — government

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