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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. land — to come down
  4. lean — thin
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. squash — the sport
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. drill — a practice
  9. face — to confront
  10. root — the cause
  11. row — to paddle
  12. land — ground
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. root — of a plant
  15. face — to point toward
  16. row — a line
  17. squash — to crush
  18. drill — the tool
  19. land — a country
  20. rule — government
  21. root — of a word
  22. rule — a law
  23. face — part of the head
  24. lean — to bend

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