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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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. chest — a box
  3. chest — of your body
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. track — a path
  6. file — a tool
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. rule — a law
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. file — a document
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. track — a song
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. file — a line of people
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. rash — a series
  19. rule — government
  20. track — to keep track
  21. cold — an illness
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. cold — not warm
  24. rash — hasty

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