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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. object — a thing
  3. fall — to drop
  4. last — to go on
  5. fall — the season
  6. current — electric
  7. branch — a division
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. last — final
  11. fall — to drop
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. stock — shares
  14. object — to protest
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. last — finally
  17. current — happening now
  18. current — of water
  19. stock — goods
  20. game — wild animals
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. game — a match
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. bark — to shout

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