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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. root — the cause
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. drill — army training
  6. tear — from crying
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. game — wild animals
  9. root — of a plant
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. wake — a trail
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. drill — the tool
  14. game — a match
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. tear — from crying
  17. rule — a law
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. tear — to rip
  20. drill — a practice
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. root — of a word
  24. calf — a young animal

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