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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. current — electric
  3. deal — to handle
  4. drill — the tool
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. capital — a city
  8. drill — army training
  9. current — of water
  10. current — happening now
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. fork — in a road
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. scale — in music
  19. branch — a division
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. capital — money
  22. scale — size or range
  23. rush — hurry
  24. drill — a practice

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