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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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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: ground · bass · fall · rule · saw · ruler · chair · foot

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. rule — a law
  3. chair — a leader
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. foot — a measure
  7. ground — a position
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. saw — the tool
  12. fall — the season
  13. bass — low music
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. fall — to drop
  16. ground — crushed
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. bass — the fish
  20. saw — the tool
  21. rule — government
  22. ground — the earth
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. foot — the bottom

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