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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 ________________ went through the wall.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. ground — a position
  3. march — the month
  4. hand — help
  5. rule — a law
  6. file — a tool
  7. rule — government
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. march — music
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. hand — in cards
  12. ground — the earth
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. rash — hasty
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. rash — a series
  19. stand — to bear
  20. file — a line of people
  21. ground — crushed
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. march — the month
  24. file — a document

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