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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: cold · scale · cabinet · toast · rule · ground

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. toast — bread
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. scale — in music
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. cold — an illness
  9. cold — not warm
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. ground — the earth
  12. ground — crushed
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. rule — a law
  15. scale — size or range
  16. rule — government
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. scale — for weighing

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