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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 116 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: nail · fork · cold · rule · band · pitcher · chip · kick

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. kick — in football
  3. chip — for betting
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. band — a ring
  8. cold — not warm
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. band — a music group
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. chip — to eat
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. fork — in a road
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. rule — a law
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. rule — government
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. cold — an illness

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