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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. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. cell — a phone
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. club — for golf
  7. mine — for digging
  8. club — a group
  9. bat — the animal
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. club — for dancing
  19. rash — a series
  20. fork — in a road
  21. cell — in biology
  22. rash — hasty
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. plane — a tool

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