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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: ruler · nail · ground · cold · wake · fall · cue · row

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. wake — a trail
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. ground — a position
  5. fall — to drop
  6. row — to paddle
  7. cold — an illness
  8. ground — crushed
  9. cold — not warm
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. cue — a signal
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. fall — to drop
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. cue — a hint
  19. fall — the season
  20. cue — for pool
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. row — a line

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