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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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. ground — the earth
  4. rule — government
  5. spring — a coil
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. spring — the season
  8. ground — crushed
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. drill — army training
  11. hand — in cards
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. hand — help
  16. rule — a law
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. ground — a position
  21. fork — in a road
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. drill — a practice
  24. drill — the tool

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