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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. drill — a practice
  5. rule — government
  6. cold — not warm
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. drill — the tool
  12. cold — an illness
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. drill — army training
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. current — of water
  18. pit — in a race
  19. current — happening now
  20. rule — a law
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. current — electric
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. pit — a hole

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