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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. rest — what's left
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. spell — a short time
  5. land — to come down
  6. current — happening now
  7. drill — a practice
  8. race — a contest
  9. race — humankind
  10. current — electric
  11. scale — in music
  12. land — ground
  13. drill — the tool
  14. land — a country
  15. drill — army training
  16. race — the arms race
  17. current — of water
  18. rest — a break
  19. spell — letters
  20. bank — for money
  21. scale — size or range
  22. bank — of a river
  23. rest — what's left
  24. spell — magic

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