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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: file · last · rule · bound · spell · pop · rash · present

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. file — a tool
  3. last — to go on
  4. present — there
  5. pop — to visit
  6. bound — obliged
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. present — a gift
  9. spell — letters
  10. bound — tied together
  11. rule — a law
  12. rash — hasty
  13. last — finally
  14. pop — music
  15. present — the time now
  16. file — a line of people
  17. bound — certain
  18. spell — magic
  19. file — a document
  20. pop — soda
  21. rash — a series
  22. last — final
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. spell — a short time

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