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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: march · mug · straw · drill · rule · leaves · arm · capital

  1. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. mug — a cup
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. drill — the tool
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. mug — a face
  11. march — the month
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. march — music
  15. rule — a law
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. capital — a city
  18. capital — money
  19. march — the month
  20. drill — army training
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. rule — government
  23. drill — a practice
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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