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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. rest — what's left
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. fine — all right
  5. last — to go on
  6. rest — what's left
  7. file — a document
  8. last — final
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. file — a line of people
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. fine — high quality
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. last — finally
  17. stand — to bear
  18. rest — a break
  19. rule — a law
  20. pound — a weight
  21. file — a tool
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. pound — to hit hard

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