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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. ground — crushed
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. club — a group
  5. chip — to eat
  6. land — ground
  7. drill — the tool
  8. drill — a practice
  9. club — for dancing
  10. bark — to shout
  11. land — a country
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. wind — moving air
  14. land — to come down
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. ground — a position
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. chip — for betting
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. ground — the earth
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. wind — moving air
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. club — for golf

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