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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 information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. rule — a law
  3. march — the month
  4. file — a tool
  5. bore — to tire
  6. march — music
  7. march — the month
  8. present — a gift
  9. drill — a practice
  10. present — there
  11. ground — the earth
  12. bore — to drill
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. ground — crushed
  15. drill — army training
  16. drill — the tool
  17. rule — government
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. present — the time now
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. fork — in a road
  22. file — a line of people
  23. ground — a position
  24. fork — to eat with

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