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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: chair · tear · row · scale · wind · snap · mark · rule

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. scale — in music
  4. rule — government
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. mark — a grade
  8. scale — size or range
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. mark — a trace
  11. wind — moving air
  12. tear — from crying
  13. rule — a law
  14. row — a line
  15. tear — from crying
  16. snap — to click
  17. tear — to rip
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. chair — a leader
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. row — to paddle
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. wind — moving air

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