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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. tear — from crying
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. field — farmland
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. wake — a trail
  7. rush — hurry
  8. tear — to rip
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. lie — to recline
  11. cell — in biology
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. tear — from crying
  15. fall — to drop
  16. cell — a phone
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. fall — to drop
  19. field — for sport
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. field — a subject
  22. fall — the season
  23. rule — a law
  24. lie — an untruth

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