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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. rule — government
  3. key — for a lock
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. tear — to rip
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. lean — to bend
  8. lean — thin
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. can — a tin
  12. key — in music
  13. cell — a phone
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — from crying
  17. cell — in biology
  18. key — the most important part
  19. can — a tin
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. rule — a law
  22. can — to be able to
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. chair — a leader

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