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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. last — to go on
  3. drill — the tool
  4. wind — moving air
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. cue — a signal
  7. rule — government
  8. staff — employees
  9. spell — a short time
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. board — a committee
  12. drill — army training
  13. last — finally
  14. spell — magic
  15. board — to get on
  16. staff — employees
  17. spell — letters
  18. cue — for pool
  19. drill — a practice
  20. cue — a hint
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. last — final
  23. wind — moving air
  24. rule — a law

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