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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. rule — a law
  4. drill — a practice
  5. capital — a city
  6. drill — army training
  7. file — a line of people
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. capital — money
  10. fork — in a road
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. club — for golf
  13. file — a tool
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. file — a document
  16. club — for dancing
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. club — a group
  19. staff — a stick
  20. rule — government
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. staff — employees
  23. drill — the tool
  24. fan — a supporter

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