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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. object — to protest
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. drill — the tool
  6. file — a tool
  7. drill — a practice
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. branch — a division
  10. press — newspapers
  11. file — a document
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. drill — army training
  14. file — a line of people
  15. field — farmland
  16. rule — government
  17. press — a publisher
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. field — for sport
  21. object — a thing
  22. press — to push
  23. object — an aim
  24. rule — a law

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