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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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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: ground · tear · file · cabinet · rest · last · rule · cap

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. rest — a break
  3. rule — a law
  4. ground — a position
  5. last — to go on
  6. ground — crushed
  7. last — final
  8. file — a line of people
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. tear — from crying
  11. rule — government
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. cap — a lid
  14. tear — to rip
  15. cap — a hat
  16. ground — the earth
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rest — what's left
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. tear — from crying
  21. file — a tool
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. last — finally
  24. file — a document

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