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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: ruler · firm · cold · pitch · bowl · last · rule · fork

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. last — finally
  3. rule — a law
  4. cold — not warm
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. pitch — completely
  8. firm — steady
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. fork — in a road
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. cold — an illness
  19. last — final
  20. firm — decided
  21. last — to go on
  22. firm — a company
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. ruler — for measuring

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