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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: last · current · fall · key · spring · deal · rule · bat

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. fall — to drop
  3. rule — a law
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. fall — to drop
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. key — the most important part
  8. spring — the season
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. fall — the season
  11. last — final
  12. bat — the animal
  13. current — happening now
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. current — electric
  16. deal — to handle
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. current — of water
  19. spring — a coil
  20. last — finally
  21. key — in music
  22. spring — of water
  23. key — for a lock
  24. rule — government

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