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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 124 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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: ruler · pitcher · game · shower · drill · board · cabinet · cold

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. drill — army training
  3. shower — rain
  4. shower — to wash
  5. game — wild animals
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. drill — a practice
  9. board — to get on
  10. game — a match
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. cold — an illness
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. drill — the tool
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. cold — not warm
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. board — a committee
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. game — a kind of play

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