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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 120 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: board · rule · present · arm · chest · cold · firm · wound

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. wound — an injury
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. present — a gift
  7. firm — decided
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. chest — of your body
  10. rule — a law
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. wound — an injury
  13. board — a committee
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. present — there
  16. present — the time now
  17. firm — a company
  18. cold — not warm
  19. chest — of your body
  20. chest — a box
  21. board — to get on
  22. cold — an illness
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. firm — steady

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