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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. spell — letters
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. spell — magic
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. cap — a hat
  9. rule — a law
  10. rule — government
  11. ball — a great time
  12. fork — in a road
  13. cap — a lid
  14. cap — of ice
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — to rip
  18. row — a line
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. spell — a short time
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. ball — a dance
  23. row — to paddle
  24. tear — from crying

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