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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: date · clip · club · rule · cell · can · fork · drill

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. drill — army training
  3. club — a group
  4. cell — in biology
  5. drill — a practice
  6. clip — to cut
  7. clip — a video
  8. club — for dancing
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. drill — the tool
  12. fork — in a road
  13. cell — a phone
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. clip — for paper
  16. can — a tin
  17. can — to be able to
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. rule — government
  20. date — the fruit
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. club — for golf
  24. can — a tin

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