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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: drill · field · capital · rule · race · staff · bear · club

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. race — the arms race
  3. rule — a law
  4. bear — the animal
  5. capital — a city
  6. staff — a stick
  7. drill — a practice
  8. club — for dancing
  9. staff — employees
  10. race — humankind
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. rule — government
  13. bear — the animal
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. drill — army training
  16. club — for golf
  17. race — a contest
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. field — a subject
  20. field — for sport
  21. club — a group
  22. field — farmland
  23. staff — employees
  24. capital — money

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