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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: coach · drill · file · fall · calf · clip · rule · season

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. season — of the year
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. rule — a law
  5. file — a line of people
  6. drill — a practice
  7. fall — to drop
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. file — a tool
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. drill — army training
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. fall — the season
  14. drill — the tool
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. file — a document
  18. clip — to cut
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. clip — for paper
  21. season — in sport
  22. clip — a video
  23. rule — government
  24. fall — to drop

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