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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: fork · spell · mouse · fall · spring · ball · rule · last

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. rule — a law
  5. ball — a great time
  6. ball — a dance
  7. spell — a short time
  8. last — to go on
  9. spell — letters
  10. spell — magic
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. spring — of water
  14. spring — a coil
  15. fall — the season
  16. last — final
  17. fall — to drop
  18. spring — the season
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. fall — to drop
  22. fork — in a road
  23. last — finally
  24. mouse — for a computer

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