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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. last — finally
  3. mate — a partner
  4. rule — a law
  5. key — the most important part
  6. chest — a box
  7. chest — of your body
  8. chest — of your body
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. last — to go on
  11. mate — a friend
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. snap — to click
  14. branch — a division
  15. key — for a lock
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. rule — government
  20. key — in music
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. last — final
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. cabinet — ministers

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