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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: kick · march · nail · rush · track · cold · rule · deal

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. track — a path
  3. rush — hurry
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. march — music
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. cold — not warm
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. cold — an illness
  12. march — the month
  13. track — to keep track
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. march — the month
  16. deal — to handle
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. rule — a law
  22. track — a song
  23. rule — government
  24. kick — in football

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