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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 120 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. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. fork — in a road
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. cold — not warm
  13. cold — an illness
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. hand — in cards
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. stem — to come from
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. hand — help

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