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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 120 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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. capital — money
  6. bat — the animal
  7. rule — a law
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. drill — army training
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. rule — government
  12. drill — a practice
  13. drill — the tool
  14. scale — in music
  15. snap — to click
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. game — a match
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. capital — a city
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. game — wild animals

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