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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 116 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 ball is in your ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. court — for sport
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. tear — from crying
  5. lean — thin
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. tear — from crying
  8. court — of law
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. tear — to rip
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. band — a ring
  17. stock — goods
  18. lean — to bend
  19. band — a music group
  20. court — of a king
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. rule — government
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. stock — shares

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