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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: rule · march · last · capital · drill · wind · staff · temple

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. drill — a practice
  3. wind — moving air
  4. march — the month
  5. capital — money
  6. drill — the tool
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. wind — moving air
  9. staff — a stick
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. last — to go on
  12. last — finally
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. march — the month
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. rule — a law
  18. capital — a city
  19. staff — employees
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. staff — employees
  22. drill — army training
  23. last — final
  24. rule — government

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