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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: rule · fork · fall · lean · roll · ruler · coach · land

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. rule — a law
  4. fall — to drop
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. rule — government
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. fall — the season
  13. roll — a cake
  14. land — a country
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. lean — to bend
  17. fork — in a road
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. fall — to drop
  21. roll — a list
  22. land — ground
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. lean — thin

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