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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: ruler · bulb · mine · race · ball · land · fork · drill

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. land — a country
  5. ball — a great time
  6. bulb — for light
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. drill — the tool
  9. land — to come down
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. race — the arms race
  13. ball — a dance
  14. bulb — for light
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. race — a contest
  18. fork — in a road
  19. mine — for digging
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. race — humankind
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. drill — a practice
  24. drill — army training

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