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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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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: tear · ball · firm · sharp · ground · drill · rule · spell

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. firm — a company
  4. ground — crushed
  5. firm — decided
  6. ball — a dance
  7. spell — a short time
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. ball — a great time
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. drill — the tool
  12. firm — steady
  13. tear — to rip
  14. spell — letters
  15. ground — a position
  16. sharp — clever
  17. rule — government
  18. rule — a law
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. drill — army training
  21. drill — a practice
  22. spell — magic
  23. tear — from crying
  24. ground — the earth

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