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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. craft — boats
  4. drill — the tool
  5. hand — in cards
  6. stock — shares
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. stock — goods
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. wound — an injury
  11. land — ground
  12. wound — an injury
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. drill — a practice
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. rule — a law
  17. rule — government
  18. land — to come down
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. craft — a skill
  23. hand — help
  24. land — a country

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