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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: root · nail · straw · file · rule · court · plane · field

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. file — a line of people
  4. court — of law
  5. rule — government
  6. root — of a word
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. rule — a law
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. court — of a king
  11. field — for sport
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. file — a document
  14. root — the cause
  15. field — farmland
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. root — of a plant
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. court — for sport
  21. file — a tool
  22. field — a subject
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. plane — a tool

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