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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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. pit — a hole
  4. branch — a division
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. pit — in a race
  7. rush — hurry
  8. last — to go on
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. ground — the earth
  15. last — finally
  16. hand — in cards
  17. ground — crushed
  18. ground — a position
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. hand — help
  21. perch — the fish
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. last — final

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