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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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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: lie · last · rest · tear · pass · rule · stem · chair

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  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. chair — a leader
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. last — finally
  4. rest — a break
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. tear — from crying
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. rest — what's left
  11. tear — to rip
  12. rest — what's left
  13. rule — a law
  14. lie — to recline
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. stem — to come from
  17. tear — from crying
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. pass — a permit
  20. last — final
  21. last — to go on
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. rule — to rule out
  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