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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. scale — size or range
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. last — final
  5. scale — in music
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. squash — the sport
  9. bulb — for light
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. rest — what's left
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. squash — to crush
  14. last — to go on
  15. rest — what's left
  16. branch — a division
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. bulb — for light
  21. last — finally
  22. snap — to click
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. rest — a break

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