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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: temple · present · spring · drill · tear · bound · kick · rule

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. spring — a coil
  4. drill — the tool
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. tear — from crying
  8. drill — army training
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. bound — certain
  13. drill — a practice
  14. bound — tied together
  15. present — a gift
  16. kick — in football
  17. tear — to rip
  18. bound — obliged
  19. tear — from crying
  20. rule — government
  21. present — the time now
  22. spring — the season
  23. present — there
  24. spring — of water

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