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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. rest — a break
  4. stock — shares
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. rest — what's left
  7. land — a country
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. rush — hurry
  10. drill — army training
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. face — to confront
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. face — part of the head
  15. drill — a practice
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. face — to point toward
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. stock — goods
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. rest — what's left
  22. land — ground
  23. drill — the tool
  24. land — to come down

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