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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 · chip · fork · net · cold · ruler · scale · spell

  1. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. spell — magic
  3. scale — size or range
  4. net — in sport
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. rule — government
  7. net — for catching
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. scale — in music
  11. cold — an illness
  12. spell — letters
  13. chip — for betting
  14. net — after costs
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. rule — a law
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. spell — a short time
  22. chip — to eat
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. cold — not warm

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