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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 120 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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. wake — a trail
  3. last — final
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. last — to go on
  13. branch — a division
  14. drill — a practice
  15. drill — army training
  16. rule — a law
  17. rule — government
  18. season — of the year
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. drill — the tool
  21. last — finally
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. deal — to handle

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