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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: rule · wave · spring · bore · face · last

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. 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. last — finally
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. face — to confront
  4. bore — to tire
  5. last — final
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. last — to go on
  8. face — to point toward
  9. rule — government
  10. spring — a coil
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. spring — of water
  13. rule — a law
  14. bore — to drill
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. spring — the season
  18. 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