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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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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: bear · pit · season · kid · bound · rash · ruler · rule

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. kid — to tease
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. pit — in a race
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. bear — the animal
  8. rash — hasty
  9. kid — child
  10. season — of the year
  11. bound — obliged
  12. rash — a series
  13. season — in sport
  14. rule — a law
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. bound — certain
  18. bear — the animal
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. rule — government
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. bound — tied together
  24. pit — a hole

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