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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. drill — the tool
  3. rule — a law
  4. net — after costs
  5. chip — for betting
  6. band — a ring
  7. lean — thin
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. saw — the tool
  10. object — to protest
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. rule — government
  13. object — an aim
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. object — a thing
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. net — for catching
  18. band — a music group
  19. chip — to eat
  20. net — in sport
  21. saw — the tool
  22. drill — a practice
  23. lean — to bend
  24. chip — in a computer

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