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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. rule — government
  4. drill — a practice
  5. stock — goods
  6. rule — a law
  7. game — wild animals
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. game — a match
  10. row — a line
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. scale — size or range
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. deal — to handle
  17. row — to paddle
  18. scale — in music
  19. stock — shares
  20. drill — the tool
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. fork — in a road
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. game — a kind of play

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