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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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468
Word bank
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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. pop — to visit
  3. tear — to rip
  4. saw — the tool
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. pop — music
  8. saw — the tool
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. degree — an amount
  11. degree — from a university
  12. rule — a law
  13. tear — from crying
  14. chair — a leader
  15. pop — soda
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. degree — temperature
  22. pass — a permit
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. tear — from crying

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