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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  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. drill — army training
  2. race — humankind
  3. race — a contest
  4. drill — the tool
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. drill — a practice
  7. cell — a phone
  8. race — the arms race
  9. last — to go on
  10. last — final
  11. object — a thing
  12. bank — for money
  13. cell — in biology
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. last — finally
  16. bank — for money
  17. fork — in a road
  18. object — to protest
  19. bank — of a river
  20. object — an aim
  21. chip — for betting
  22. chip — to eat
  23. chip — in a computer
  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