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

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  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. drill — a practice
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. roll — a cake
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. degree — an amount
  9. degree — temperature
  10. row — a line
  11. degree — from a university
  12. ground — a position
  13. drill — the tool
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. roll — a list
  16. rule — a law
  17. row — to paddle
  18. drill — army training
  19. ground — crushed
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. rule — government
  23. roll — on a roll
  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