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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. rule — a law
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. content — happy
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. saw — the tool
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. cap — a hat
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. chip — for betting
  11. mug — to rob
  12. cap — a lid
  13. bark — to shout
  14. content — the amount
  15. mug — a cup
  16. tear — to rip
  17. cap — of ice
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. tear — from crying
  20. saw — the tool
  21. mug — a face
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. rule — government
  24. chip — to eat

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