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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: ruler · rule · chest · fall · scale · leaves

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. rule — government
  3. chest — of your body
  4. rule — a law
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. chest — of your body
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. fall — the season
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. fall — to drop
  14. scale — in music
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. fall — to drop
  17. scale — size or range
  18. chest — a box

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