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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: cap · kid · mine · leaves · rule · drill · wind · mark

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. cap — a lid
  4. cap — a hat
  5. rule — a law
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. drill — army training
  8. mark — a grade
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. cap — of ice
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. mark — a trace
  13. wind — moving air
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. kid — to tease
  16. kid — child
  17. wind — moving air
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. mine — for digging
  21. drill — the tool
  22. drill — a practice
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. leaves — to go away

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