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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 · pass · last · chest · row · pit · rush · cue

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. last — to go on
  4. pit — a hole
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. last — finally
  7. cue — a signal
  8. cue — a hint
  9. last — final
  10. rush — hurry
  11. rule — government
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. cue — for pool
  14. pit — in a race
  15. pass — a permit
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chest — a box
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. row — a line
  22. chest — of your body
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. row — to paddle

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