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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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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. rest — what's left
  3. row — a line
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. file — a tool
  6. row — to paddle
  7. fork — in a road
  8. rash — a series
  9. stock — shares
  10. file — a line of people
  11. rule — a law
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. file — a document
  14. capital — a city
  15. rest — what's left
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. rash — hasty
  19. rule — government
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. stock — goods
  24. rest — a break

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