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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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Word bank
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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: rash · wind · rest · rule · cap · cold

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. rest — what's left
  4. wind — moving air
  5. rash — hasty
  6. cold — not warm
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. cap — a hat
  9. wind — moving air
  10. cap — of ice
  11. rule — a law
  12. rest — what's left
  13. cold — an illness
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. rule — government
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. rash — a series
  18. rest — a break

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