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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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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: rule · patient · drill · march · pound · toast · squash · straw

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. rule — a law
  3. drill — the tool
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. march — music
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. squash — to crush
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. drill — a practice
  14. drill — army training
  15. squash — the sport
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. march — the month
  18. march — the month
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. toast — bread
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. rule — government
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. pound — a weight

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