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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 120 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: march · ruler · nail · wake · race · dip · fall · trunk

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. march — music
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. fall — to drop
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. wake — a trail
  10. race — a contest
  11. race — the arms race
  12. dip — to sink
  13. race — humankind
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. march — the month
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. fall — the season
  20. march — the month
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. nail — on a finger

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