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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: lean · tear · sharp · court · pass · cell · object · rule

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. object — to protest
  3. sharp — clever
  4. lean — to bend
  5. tear — from crying
  6. court — for sport
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. rule — government
  10. court — of a king
  11. object — a thing
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. tear — to rip
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. object — an aim
  16. court — of law
  17. cell — a phone
  18. tear — from crying
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. lean — thin
  21. pass — a permit
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. rule — a law
  24. rule — to rule out

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