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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 120 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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. rest — what's left
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. firm — a company
  5. rest — what's left
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. pop — to visit
  8. firm — steady
  9. bound — obliged
  10. drill — a practice
  11. rule — government
  12. rest — a break
  13. bound — tied together
  14. drill — army training
  15. rule — a law
  16. pop — soda
  17. pop — music
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. prune — to trim
  20. prune — to trim
  21. bat — the animal
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bound — certain
  24. drill — the tool

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