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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. last — to go on
  3. chest — of your body
  4. mine — for digging
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. current — of water
  7. cue — a signal
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. chest — of your body
  10. last — final
  11. current — electric
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. current — happening now
  15. cue — a hint
  16. stock — goods
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. cue — for pool
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. chest — a box
  21. rule — government
  22. rule — a law
  23. stock — shares
  24. wave — with your hand

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