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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. scale — in music
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. last — finally
  7. plane — a tool
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. file — a tool
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. fork — in a road
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. last — final
  18. file — a document
  19. file — a line of people
  20. rule — government
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. rule — a law
  23. last — to go on
  24. rule — to rule out

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