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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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. cell — in biology
  7. snap — to click
  8. fine — all right
  9. last — finally
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. rule — a law
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. cold — not warm
  15. fine — high quality
  16. last — to go on
  17. cold — an illness
  18. last — final
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. rule — government
  21. cell — a phone
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. cold — the Cold War

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