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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: scale · squash · land · branch · fan · club · rule · patient

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. rule — a law
  3. scale — in music
  4. club — a group
  5. squash — to crush
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. land — ground
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. rule — government
  12. land — to come down
  13. branch — a division
  14. land — a country
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. scale — size or range
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. club — for dancing
  19. squash — the sport
  20. club — for golf
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. patient — a sick person

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