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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. drill — a practice
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. tube — the underground
  6. drill — the tool
  7. march — the month
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. stock — goods
  10. file — a line of people
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. march — the month
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. land — to come down
  17. file — a tool
  18. tube — a container
  19. march — music
  20. drill — army training
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. file — a document
  23. land — ground
  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