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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. land — a country
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. board — to get on
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. land — to come down
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. rule — a law
  10. bat — the animal
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. lie — to recline
  14. band — a ring
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. band — a music group
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. board — a committee
  20. tear — from crying
  21. land — ground
  22. tear — to rip
  23. rule — government
  24. board — a flat piece

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