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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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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: wound · shower · game · ruler · file · bowl · lean · rule

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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. wound — an injury
  4. file — a document
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. lean — to bend
  7. rule — government
  8. game — wild animals
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. file — a tool
  12. shower — rain
  13. lean — thin
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. file — a line of people
  16. game — a match
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. wound — an injury
  19. rule — a law
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. ruler — for measuring

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