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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: deal · rule · tear · court · file · pit

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. pit — a hole
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. rule — government
  6. court — of law
  7. file — a line of people
  8. tear — from crying
  9. pit — in a race
  10. tear — to rip
  11. court — of a king
  12. file — a tool
  13. deal — to handle
  14. rule — a law
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. file — a document
  17. court — for sport
  18. pit — a fruit stone

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