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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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Word bank
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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: bore · fork · sharp · rule · cold · pop · cap · club

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. fork — in a road
  3. cap — a hat
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. cap — a lid
  10. bore — to drill
  11. club — a group
  12. cold — not warm
  13. club — for golf
  14. pop — music
  15. pop — to visit
  16. rule — government
  17. cold — an illness
  18. club — for dancing
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. bore — to tire
  21. rule — a law
  22. sharp — clever
  23. cap — of ice
  24. fork — a garden tool

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