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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. drill — army training
  3. court — of law
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. mate — a friend
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. drill — a practice
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. fork — in a road
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. mate — to breed
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. wake — a trail
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. court — for sport
  16. court — of a king
  17. tube — a container
  18. mate — a partner
  19. drill — the tool
  20. tube — the underground
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. bat — the animal
  24. ruler — for measuring

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