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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 124 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 ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. rule — a law
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. last — to go on
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. rest — a break
  7. rest — what's left
  8. last — finally
  9. scale — size or range
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. ball — a great time
  12. stock — goods
  13. ball — a dance
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. branch — a division
  16. last — final
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. scale — in music
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. rule — government
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. stock — shares
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. ball — a round shape

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