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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. rule — government
  3. pop — soda
  4. file — a document
  5. tear — from crying
  6. swing — to play on
  7. face — to point toward
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. tear — to rip
  10. rule — a law
  11. pop — to visit
  12. cell — a phone
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. file — a line of people
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. file — a tool
  17. swing — music
  18. pop — music
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. tear — from crying
  21. cell — in biology
  22. swing — in golf
  23. face — to confront
  24. face — part of the head

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