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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 people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. shower — to wash
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. hand — in cards
  5. row — a line
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. cue — a signal
  8. cue — for pool
  9. bear — the animal
  10. land — ground
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. shower — rain
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. land — a country
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. hand — help
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. cue — a hint
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. row — to paddle
  23. bear — the animal
  24. land — to come down

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