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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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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: drill · wave · ball · file · fall · land · deal · fork

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. drill — army training
  5. fall — the season
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. fork — in a road
  8. drill — the tool
  9. land — ground
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. drill — a practice
  12. file — a document
  13. fall — to drop
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. fall — to drop
  18. deal — to handle
  19. ball — a great time
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. file — a line of people
  22. file — a tool
  23. land — to come down
  24. ball — a dance

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