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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: net · cold · pit · drill · root · fork · pass · rule

  1. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. drill — army training
  3. root — of a plant
  4. rule — government
  5. fork — in a road
  6. pit — a hole
  7. drill — the tool
  8. net — after costs
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. root — the cause
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. rule — a law
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. root — of a word
  15. net — in sport
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. cold — not warm
  18. drill — a practice
  19. cold — an illness
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. pit — in a race
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. net — for catching
  24. pass — to succeed

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