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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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. pound — a weight
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. mate — a partner
  6. cold — an illness
  7. cold — not warm
  8. file — a tool
  9. file — a line of people
  10. rule — government
  11. rule — a law
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. file — a document
  14. rush — hurry
  15. mate — a friend
  16. bank — for money
  17. bank — for money
  18. mate — to breed
  19. prune — to trim
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. prune — to trim
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. bank — of a river

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