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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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. drill — the tool
  4. staff — employees
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. pit — in a race
  7. game — a match
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. cold — an illness
  12. rule — a law
  13. cold — not warm
  14. staff — a stick
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. pit — a hole
  17. wound — an injury
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. drill — a practice
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. drill — army training
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. staff — employees
  24. rule — government

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