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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: row · rule · hide · wound · chest · prune · chip · rash

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. chip — to eat
  4. chest — of your body
  5. wound — an injury
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. chest — a box
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. row — a line
  11. chip — for betting
  12. prune — to trim
  13. chest — of your body
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. prune — to trim
  17. row — to paddle
  18. rash — a series
  19. wound — an injury
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. rash — hasty
  24. rule — government

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