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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: saw · bay · cold · lean · lie · rule · jam · mark

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  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. mark — to pay attention
  2. saw — the tool
  3. lean — thin
  4. saw — the tool
  5. rule — a law
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. mark — a trace
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. cold — not warm
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. cold — an illness
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. mark — a grade
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. lean — to bend
  22. lie — to recline
  23. jam — in traffic
  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