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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: band · ruler · wake · fan · stick · ground · game · tear

  1. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. ground — crushed
  5. tear — to rip
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. band — a music group
  8. game — a match
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. game — wild animals
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. ground — a position
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. band — a ring
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tear — from crying
  21. ground — the earth
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. wake — a trail
  24. fan — a supporter

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