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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: club · hand · tear · rule · track · staff · cap · face

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. track — to keep track
  3. face — to confront
  4. rule — a law
  5. tear — from crying
  6. track — a path
  7. hand — in cards
  8. cap — a hat
  9. hand — help
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. tear — to rip
  12. club — for dancing
  13. club — for golf
  14. cap — of ice
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. face — part of the head
  17. staff — employees
  18. cap — a lid
  19. tear — from crying
  20. track — a song
  21. staff — employees
  22. face — to point toward
  23. rule — government
  24. staff — a stick

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