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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: date · leaves · ground · bowl · wake · land · nail · rule

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. rule — a law
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. ground — crushed
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. date — the fruit
  16. wake — a trail
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. land — a country
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. ground — the earth
  22. land — ground
  23. rule — government
  24. ground — a position

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