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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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. bore — to drill
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. fine — all right
  8. season — in sport
  9. fine — high quality
  10. fall — to drop
  11. race — a contest
  12. race — humankind
  13. season — of the year
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. fall — to drop
  16. bore — to tire
  17. fall — the season
  18. race — the arms race
  19. cold — an illness
  20. cold — not warm
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. rule — government
  24. rule — a law

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