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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 116 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: rest · spring · wound · chip · rule · band · lie · mark

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. mark — a grade
  5. rest — a break
  6. rule — a law
  7. rest — what's left
  8. mark — a trace
  9. chip — to eat
  10. band — a ring
  11. band — a music group
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. spring — of water
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. rest — what's left
  17. spring — the season
  18. chip — for betting
  19. lie — to recline
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. spring — a coil
  23. wound — an injury
  24. wound — an injury

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