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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: staff · rule · march · rest · file · key · capital · squash

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. capital — money
  3. staff — employees
  4. file — a tool
  5. key — the most important part
  6. march — the month
  7. staff — a stick
  8. rest — what's left
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. file — a document
  11. key — for a lock
  12. squash — the sport
  13. rule — a law
  14. march — the month
  15. march — music
  16. capital — a city
  17. file — a line of people
  18. rest — a break
  19. key — in music
  20. squash — to crush
  21. rest — what's left
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. staff — employees

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