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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. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. last — to go on
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. drill — army training
  5. spell — a short time
  6. rule — government
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. rule — a law
  9. drill — the tool
  10. bound — tied together
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. last — final
  14. bound — certain
  15. spell — letters
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. wake — a trail
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. last — finally
  20. bound — obliged
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. deal — to handle
  23. spell — magic
  24. drill — a practice

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