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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. bass — low music
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. board — a committee
  6. kid — child
  7. kid — to tease
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. field — for sport
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. rule — government
  19. board — to get on
  20. fork — in a road
  21. field — a subject
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. field — farmland
  24. bass — the fish

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