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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: stand · deal · rule · land · spell · pop · shower · drill

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. shower — rain
  3. rule — government
  4. pop — soda
  5. land — to come down
  6. pop — music
  7. spell — a short time
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. rule — a law
  10. drill — the tool
  11. drill — army training
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. deal — to handle
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. pop — to visit
  16. spell — letters
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. spell — magic
  19. drill — a practice
  20. shower — to wash
  21. land — ground
  22. land — a country
  23. stand — to bear
  24. stand — on your feet

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