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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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  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. scale — for weighing
  2. clip — a video
  3. last — finally
  4. drill — a practice
  5. clip — for paper
  6. last — to go on
  7. drill — army training
  8. branch — a division
  9. scale — size or range
  10. scale — in music
  11. rest — what's left
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. drill — the tool
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. staff — employees
  17. rest — what's left
  18. staff — a stick
  19. clip — to cut
  20. staff — employees
  21. last — final
  22. rest — a break
  23. branch — of a tree
  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