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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 124 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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. drill — the tool
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. capital — a city
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. stock — goods
  11. capital — money
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. rule — government
  14. drill — army training
  15. kick — in football
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. spring — the season
  18. spring — a coil
  19. drill — a practice
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. spring — of water
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. stock — shares

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