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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: cell · bound · wake · lie · object · tear · rule · coach

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. object — a thing
  5. tear — from crying
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. lie — to recline
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. object — to protest
  12. rule — a law
  13. bound — obliged
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. cell — a phone
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. tear — to rip
  18. object — an aim
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. bound — certain
  21. bound — tied together
  22. tear — from crying
  23. wake — a trail
  24. cell — in biology

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