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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 116 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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. last — final
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. last — to go on
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. bound — tied together
  11. bound — obliged
  12. rule — a law
  13. bound — certain
  14. rule — government
  15. rush — hurry
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. last — finally
  20. sharp — clever
  21. pass — a permit
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. leaves — of a tree

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