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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. file — a document
  4. craft — a skill
  5. file — a line of people
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. scale — in music
  9. craft — boats
  10. row — a line
  11. rest — what's left
  12. rule — government
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. row — to paddle
  15. march — the month
  16. rest — what's left
  17. scale — size or range
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. march — the month
  21. march — music
  22. kick — in football
  23. rule — a law
  24. file — a tool

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