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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. land — a country
  3. rest — what's left
  4. last — to go on
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. branch — a division
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wound — an injury
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. land — to come down
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. rest — what's left
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. object — an aim
  19. object — to protest
  20. object — a thing
  21. land — ground
  22. rest — a break
  23. last — final
  24. nail — for a hammer

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