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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 116 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 · cell · fork · bowl · land · game · wake · stick

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. land — ground
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. game — wild animals
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. land — a country
  16. game — a match
  17. cell — a phone
  18. cell — in biology
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. wake — a trail
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. land — to come down
  23. fork — in a road
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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