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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 116 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. False peace will not ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. last — to go on
  3. land — ground
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. rest — what's left
  10. branch — a division
  11. land — to come down
  12. rush — hurry
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. rest — a break
  15. snap — to click
  16. last — final
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. last — finally
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. land — a country
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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