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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. tear — from crying
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. chip — to eat
  5. tear — to rip
  6. key — for a lock
  7. key — the most important part
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. cold — not warm
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. rule — government
  15. key — in music
  16. prune — to trim
  17. chip — for betting
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. prune — to trim
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. rule — a law
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. tear — from crying

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