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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. rule — government
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. bass — low music
  5. cell — in biology
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. wound — an injury
  8. shower — rain
  9. wound — an injury
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. bass — the fish
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. cell — a phone
  15. dip — to sink
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. shower — to wash
  21. rash — hasty
  22. rash — a series
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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