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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. rule — government
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. wake — a trail
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. rule — a law
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. march — the month
  12. march — the month
  13. plane — a tool
  14. fork — in a road
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. march — music
  18. ground — crushed
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. ground — a position
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. ground — the earth

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