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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: track · fall · rule · capital · last · cabinet · roll · mate

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. track — to keep track
  3. roll — a cake
  4. fall — the season
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. last — to go on
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. mate — a partner
  10. rule — a law
  11. mate — a friend
  12. rule — government
  13. last — finally
  14. fall — to drop
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. track — a path
  17. last — final
  18. fall — to drop
  19. roll — a list
  20. capital — a city
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. track — a song
  23. capital — money
  24. mate — to breed

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