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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. drill — a practice
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. foot — a measure
  8. spring — a coil
  9. drill — army training
  10. tube — the underground
  11. rule — government
  12. spring — the season
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. rule — a law
  15. fork — in a road
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. capital — a city
  18. branch — a division
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. spring — of water
  22. tube — a container
  23. capital — money
  24. tube — in a tire

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