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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: tear · last · lean · pound · rule · spring

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. 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. rule — to rule out
  2. last — to go on
  3. spring — a coil
  4. last — final
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — from crying
  7. spring — the season
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. rule — government
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. lean — to bend
  12. spring — of water
  13. pound — a weight
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. tear — to rip
  16. last — finally
  17. lean — thin
  18. 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